Animorphs: The Alternate
by LuckynumberSleven
Summary: Alternate ending to the series. What happened if General Doubleday's men showed up earlier, and Tobias was left outside as the Pool Ship took off? What would happen? Rated T for course language, violence, gore and adult themes.
1. Chapter 1: How it is supposed to go

Disclaimer: All things Animorphs belongs to K. A. Applegate and Scholastic.

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Chapter One – "How it is supposed to go"

My name is Tobias.

Part human, part hawk, and, somehow, part Andalite. Confused yet? Trust me, it gets better.

Well, it has been three years since the war began. Three long, hard, bitter years. And now, Jake has seen a solution. He has seen an answer to the war. But, before I get ahead of myself, I best start from the beginning, and tell you how it all began. It began on a fateful Friday night, when Jake, Marco, Cassie, Rachel and myself got decided to walk home through the abandoned construction site across the main road from the mall.

Here we met a brave, but dying Andalite Prince by the name of Elfangor-Sirinal-Shamtul. Although I didn't know it at the time, but he was my father. I know, I told you it got better. Anyway, he told us of the Yeerk invasion and gave us the ability to fight, he gave us the ability to morph any living creature that we can touch. Soon after, the Yeerks caught him and Visser One, who, at the time, was Visser Three, executed him.

We found out that Jakes' brother, Tom, was a controller, so we went down to the Yeerk Pool to get him out. The Yeerk Pool is the closest thing to hell on Earth, and that's not an understatement. We, of course, failed. Tom didn't escape and I was trapped in the body of a Red-Tailed Hawk. But we did gain something, I suppose. The yeerks made the mistake of believing that we were Andalite soldiers, a lie that we used to our advantage for three years, until they finally discovered we were humans, and we went into hiding.

Over the course of the war we managed to rescue Elfangors' little brother, Aximili. We learned of the great and all-powerful beings the Ellimist and Crayak, who treat our war as a game, with the Ellimist on our side and Crayak backing the yeerks. We freed a couple of Hork-Bajir and led them to safety and in return, I recovered my morphing ability from the Ellimist. We freed Marcos' mother, the host of the previous Visser One. Protected the free Hork-Bajir from the yeerk onslaught and protected our families by moving them to the new valley. Well, all except for Jakes' family that is, Tom got to them before we did.

And that brings us to the plan, the answer. After we destroyed the Yeerks' ground based pool with the bombs supplied to us by the National Guard unit under command of Captain Olston, they destroyed most of our town so they could land their Pool Ship and feed the Yeerks on the ground while they build a new one. Opportunity number one presented itself, the government had set up a military base near our town to prepare for the start of the fight. We went to the base, and after a brief skirmish with the Yeerks, convinced the commanding officer to join his forces with ours and to provide a distraction. After a raid on the new pool, we found even more unexpected allies, the Taxxons. A race of dedicated cannibals who were sick of their way of life and saw the morphing power as a way out. So after those two meetings, we had almost three thousand allies who were willing to fight. And now, the prize is the Pool Ship. A prize more accessible than ever with the inclusion of Toms' Yeerk, the head of Pool Ship security.

The plan, as it stands, is to hide aboard Erek King, one of the Chee, a race of pacifist androids, whose creators died out millennia ago, and sneak onto the Pool Ship. As we predicted, Tom betrayed us, and the Visser ordered Erek, or Cassie, as he was posing as, to be fed to a Taxxon, me. That's where we are at the moment. But the rest of the plan is supposed to go like this: Jake observes what is happening on the bridge of the Pool Ship, while Erek and the rest of us hack the engine room and take control of the ship. Well, that's the plan anyway. So, as Rachel would say, lets do it. Speaking of Rachel, where the hell is she.

Oh, I almost forgot, the Animorphs. I almost forgot to mention who they are, and what they look like, so that if I ever get round to writing a book, I will have a record of them, although I most likely will not need one.

Jake is the leader, or 'Fearless Leader' as Marco puts it. Before the war Jake was a decent person, who loved basketball and video games and having pointless arguments with Marco over things like whether Spiderman could beat Batman, who's better at basketball and whether it is possible to taste a colour. I believe Marco thought that cheese tasted green, go figure. The first time I met Jake was when I was about to have my head flushed in a toilet, and he told them to back off, and they did. Its not that Jake was a tough guy at the start, but he had an air of authority about him, and you just did what ever he told you.

Jake is tall, not gangly tall, more well-built and big, he has brown hair and brown eyes, and I guess the girls think he's handsome, because he always has had a lot of attention from the girls.

Next is Marco, before the war I didn't know him very well, and he was kind of jerk to me, but I guess everyone was when I was in school. He's the joker of the group, as he will always tell some crap joke or glib remark before and after, and generally during, the fight. He and Rachel are always fighting with each other, I don't know whether they actually can't stand each other, or its just or shits and giggles. I don't know, don't care and that kind of understanding crap falls to Cassie.

Marco is short, and he is really conscious of that fact, and Rachel repeatedly teases him about it. He has a dark, Latino complexion and has long, dark hair and a very suspicious nature. When he was in school, he sent almost all his free time trying to annoy some poor girl.

The shortest of the group, and by far the most understanding, is Cassie, Jakes' girlfriend. Cassie has an amazing ability to understand people, and Jake uses this as one of our most effective abilities when it comes to making deals, although, her morals are so high and unshifting, that she can become impossibly set against something that we can't do it. Cassie's parents are both veterinarians, and Cassie follows suit, helping her dad out in the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center they run from their barn.

Cassie is an African-American, and has short black hair. She is short and stocky, and is usually found wearing jeans stained with about five different kinds of manure and dirt.

Next is Rachel. She's Jake's cousin and it shows, that family breeds strong people. Jake is a strong leader, and Rachel is the fearless warrior, always first to a fight and last to leave. I didn't really know her before the war, although that didn't stop me from having a crush on her. You could go as far as saying that she's my girlfriend, she's a girl and I'm a hawk, you thought Romeo and Juliet had it bad, with their families hating each other, try not being from the same species.

Rachel is beautiful; I mean it. She looks like a supermodel, she is tall, has long blonde hair, clear, sparkling blue eyes, a well defined figure, and the amazing ability to look good in any situation. That girl could be hit by a train, a bus, a tornado and a mud slide and come out without a hair out of place. She also has an unhealthy obsession with shopping, and gymnastics.

Now for our resident alien, Ax. Ax is Elfangors' little brother, and thus, my uncle. He is just an _Aristh_, or cadet, in the Andalite military, but he is already smarter than most of the scientists on our planet. Trust me, don't get him started on anything scientific, or you'll end up hitting him to make him stop because it is hurting your head.

If you've never seen an Andalite before, you would most likely be scared shitless by what you saw. Picture a large, blue dear, or small horse, with slimmer hooves, and a human torso with weak, thin arms with seven fingers. Then the real shock is the head. The shape is the same as a humans', but minus a mouth and a nose that is little more than three slits on the front of the face. Then there are the eyes. A big pair of normal, sparkly eyes, but the other pair is shocking. They are situated on top of a pair of stalks that can turn in every direction, making Andalites almost impossible to sneak up on.

And lastly there's me, of course, Bird-Boy. Before the war, I was the poor, pathetic loner, who was most likely to be picked on by the bullies; I was the bully magnet, always. I moved school a lot, so I didn't bother to make many friends. Because my father died and my mother ran out on me when I was little, I was passed between an abusive drunk of an uncle and an overworking slave driver of an aunt. During the course of the war I gained a lot of things, friends, an uncle who cared, a girlfriend and I even found out what happened to my family. My father is dead, but he was in fact Prince Elfangor himself, as I found out through a sleaze-ball of a lawyer controller. My mother, on the other hand, is still alive, she had an accident and was diagnosed with amnesia.

When you look at me in my normal form, you'll see a hawk with brown feathers down my back, with a rusty reddish-brown tail and a white chest and golden brown eyes that stare with a permanent scowl. But when I'm human, you'll see a tall, slightly gangly sixteen year old, with dirty-blonde hair and eyes, that I've been told by Rachel, never seem to have the same colour, but mostly sparkly green, like Ax's.


	2. Chapter 2: The Arrivals

Disclaimer: All things Animorphs belong to K. and Scholastic. (Enough with the legal crap and on with the story)

Author's Note: -( )- symbolize thought-speak.

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Chapter 2: The Arrivals

I was being escorted back out of the Pool Ship by several of the free Hork-Bajir when I heard Jake ask -(Tobias, you okay?)-

-(I think I chipped a couple of Taxxon teeth munching on Erek's force fields, but yeah, I'm good,)- I replied.

-(Marco? Cassie? Ax?)- Jake called.

-(We're all okay, Jake,)- Marco reported from somewhere on my skin. -(The good thing is at least this flea morph I'm in has no interest in sucking Taxxon blood.)-

-(Still no sign of Rachel,)- Cassie said. -(I thought you said she would join us.)-

-(I'm sure she's okay,)- Jake replied. -(Rachel takes care of herself. Now, you guys get to work. We need navigation control, and we need it as soon as possible.)-

As soon as those words were out of Jake's head, the ship started to rumble.

-(Oh shit!)- Jake shouted. -(Doubleday and James' men decided to show up and Visser One decided to take off! Tobias where are you?)-

-(I'm being pushed outside by the guards!)- I replied. -(You guys have to get off of me now, or you'll be stuck outside with me! Now!)-

-(But Tobias…)- Cassie started.

-(NOW!)-

-(I'm sorry Tobias,)- Jake said.

-(Don't worry,)- I replied. -(When I'm outside, I'll demorph and find a way in.)-

-(Good luck.)- Cassie said. And that was the last time I heard from any of them.

After the guards pushed me out, I ran over to the ruins of a house and demorphed inside. As the last of the Taxxon 'features' disappeared, I spread my wings and took flight. As a blessed thermal gave me more lift, I surveyed what was happening. The Pool Ship was a thousand feet in the air and the soldiers were completely confused. They fired their rifles at the ship, but that didn't do anything. The M1A2 Abrams tanks also took aim at the Pool Ship, but achieved as much as the soldiers did. Here and there I spotted an animal standing around, looking completely out of place. These were James and his group of Auxiliary Animorphs. The Auxiliary Animorphs was a group of seventeen blind or disabled children we had given the morphing power to before Tom took the morphing cube from us.

I looked up, once again, at the Pool Ship. It was huge; maybe the same size as a large sports complex, maybe bigger. Although it looked like little more than a swollen, three-legged spider, it is not something to underestimate. It could hold up to twenty Bug Fighters, and packed enough punch to blow a hole clean through a meteor the size of an average suburban house. And, as I watched, the tentacles unfurled, and there was a humming noise, that could mean one of two things; it was either going up into space, which posed a huge problem for me, or it was powering up its massive array of dracon beams, a huge problem to the troops and the Auxiliary Animorphs on the ground.

Sighing to myself, I looked around the battlefield in an attempt to find either Doubleday or James, and, as luck would have it, I found them both. James was in his lion morph, his chosen battle morph, and was sitting next to General Doubleday, discussing the situation. I realized that they must already have it under some sort of control.

I turned towards the Pool Ship just a squadron of nine F-22s flew overhead and released their missiles at the Pool Ship before peeling off. Lances of red light shot out and destroyed the missiles mid-flight, and I saw some of the soldiers visibly sag at the sight of the missiles being destroyed.

Well, I best try a find a way on board the ship before it leaves the atmosphere.

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A/N: Sorry for the short chapter, but more will come.


	3. Chapter 3: Aerial Combat

Disclaimer: All things Animorphs belong to K. and Scholastic.

Author's Note: -( )- denotes thought-speak.

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Chapter 3: Aerial Combat

Just as I decided on that, the Pool Ship let loose all of its Bug Fighters, along with those already hovering around. The Pool Ship also started to charge up its cannons. They were getting ready to destroy General Doubleday's men. And that's when all hell broke loose.

The Bug Fighters started to fire at the tanks, popping them open with their dracon cannons. The soldiers unfortunate enough to be standing too close to the tank were also killed in the explosions. The tanks started to shoot back and took down several Bug Fighters, and the soldiers with rocket launchers also took aim at the fighters as well. The Pool Ship let out precise dracon beams, each time killing one of James's Animorphs. The soldiers started running for cover and their lives.

I was really pissed off now, because there was nothing I could do to help. But then again, wasn't it their job to provide a distraction? Well, best not let their sacrifices go in vain, I needed to get onto the Pool Ship, and quickly.

I put all my energy into my wings, and flapped and soared like a bird possessed. Just as I reached the Pool Ship, they noticed me, and started shooting at me with the close-range defensive Dracon Cannons. I used every trick I knew to stop them from toasting me, whilst still looking for a hatch or something that I could use to get in.

I guess they called for backup, or something, because the next thing I knew, I was being chased by no less than three Bug Fighters, who were hell-bent on killing me.

TSSEEEEWWWW! TSSEEEEWWWW! TSSEEEEWWWW!

The lances of red light shot passed me as I dodged left and right to avoid being shot to pieces. I flapped up and up over the top of the Pool Ship, and then dived down and spiraled passed the rising Bug Fighters.

_Damn, _I thought, _these guys just don't quit!_ But then again, they were doing a damn fine job of making life at the moment hell. I skimmed along the top of the Pool Ship swing left to right to avoid the beams being shot at me. I needed to get them at the correct angle with the Pool Ship, so that if they shot at me, they would hit their precious Pool Ship, and the Visser would have their heads on a platter for that. I was using every ounce of strength, knowledge and past experience to try and escape, but they kept on my tail. The only choice was to try and destroy them before they destroyed me.

So I suddenly doubled back, and shot between two of the Bug Fighters and then up, hoping that the third one might miss and hit one of the other two. Nothing happened, the third Bug Fighter didn't destroy either one of the other two, and now they were between the Pool Ship and me. _Great, I'm screwed,_ I thought. _I know, lets play chicken. _Okay, even I'll admit that is a really stupid idea, but it's worth a shot.

I pulled my wings back, and went into a dive. I was hurtling towards the cockpit window of a Bug Fighter at 60 miles an hour, and there was no possible way to stop. As the Bug Fighter turned towards me, I was a look of surprise upon the face of the Hork-Bajir Controller in the gunner position. Then I saw a look of amusement upon its face, as it realized I wasn't a real threat, and I saw charging head long at the window. I guess they realized that the other Bug Fighters were about to shoot at me, because it pulled up and moved out of the way.

All right, I was now in front of the Pool Ship and I was out of energy and tricks. Crap, I was cornered.

-(Come on then, fucking bring it!)- I shouted at the pilots.

I saw them laughing as they started to fire.

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A/N: Tell me what you thought, be honest, but flames are unwelcome and unhelpful.


	4. Chapter 4: Flight or Fight?

Disclaimer: the usual, Animorphs not mine, they are K.'s and Scholastic's property.

Author's Note: -( )- denotes thought-speak.

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Chapter 4: Flight or Fight?

As the Dracon beams were about to hit home, I jumped up and started flapping. There was a small explosion behind me as the beams hit the Pool Ship. As the Bug Fighters turned for another shot, I heard a whooshing noise as missiles streaked towards the fighters and hit them from behind, destroying them. I saw three F-22s streak past and I quickly read the nicknames for each of the pilots: Raven, Knight and King. I should find a way to thank them, seeing as they just saved my life.

I heard another noise, and turned to look. It was a Black Hawk helicopter flying towards me. As it stopped, the guy manning the minigun motioned to me to come over to the helicopter, so I flew over and started to morph. The soldiers in the helicopter stared at me with expressions of shock, whilst I changed to human. But then, I guess that seeing a bird change to human, the twisting ligaments and skin appearing from feathers can be really disgusting, especially if you've never scene it happen before.

My beak softened and became a nose and mouth and my eyesight dimmed. My hearing cut drastically and I grew taller, very quickly. The bones in my wings cracked as they repositioned and the hollow wings solidified. My internal organs sloshed and expanded as old ones disappeared, new ones grew and others increased in size. The scales down my legs puffed out and turned the pinky colour of human flesh. My talons changed last, so I was an almost six-foot tall human teetering on twelve-inch talons. I steadied as the three talons at the front split into five toes and the talon at the back retracted and softened into a heel.

I looked up at the faces of the people staring at me. The black sergeant was the first to recover.

"Sorry about that, but I felt I easier to do this as a human, 'cause a lot of people freak when a hawk starts talking to them," I said.

"Yes, of course sir," the black sergeant said slowly, "sorry, where are my manners -"

"Buried in the yard along with your bone," said one of the privates.

"Shut up Stacker," replied the sergeant, holding out his hand, "I'm Staff Sergeant Griggs"

"I'm Tobias, the eyes and ears of the Animorphs," I replied whilst shaking his hand. "So what was the reason of flagging me over here?"

"The General wants to speak to you," said the other sergeant.

"Thank you, sergeant,"

"That's First Sergeant Mark Williams," he replied.

"The radio," I said expectantly.

"Oh, sorry, here you go. Just press that button, the General is on channel three," said Williams, handing over a radio.

The radio crackled a bit as I pressed the button. "Hello?" I said nervously, "Tobias here."

"Tobias, son, what the hell is going on, its hell down here!" the Doubleday shouted over the radio. I heard the noises of a battle raging in the background.

"The Pool Ship started to take off as I was being escorted off as a Taxxon, and the rest of the Animorphs are on board, sir."

"You don't have to call me sir, you know. If anything, I'm the one who should be calling you sir. And as for the situation, well this is just dandy isn't it?" he said sarcastically.

"Tell me, sir, how many of the Auxiliary Animorphs are still alive?" I asked, fearing the worst.

"About six, I think,"

"What about James?"

"He's still alive, luckily,"

"And what's the situation with your men?"

"We're down to 35% of full force, with two M1A2s, six Blackhawks and five F-22's. Most of the men are scattered across the town, and taking shelter in buildings."

"Where are you located, sir?"

"I'm about three clicks south-west of the Pool Ship, and we're holed up in what's left of the school, I think,"

"Okay, we're on our way,"

"We need your ass over now, son! Get here ASAP!"

"Yes, sir,"

"Doubleday out,"

"Pilot, get us to the General's position now!" I shouted

"Aye, sir"

I sat down on one of the seats and looked, once again, at the soldiers in the helicopter. As I counted, there were two sergeants, Griggs and Williams, two corporals, and six privates, including Stacker, the one who spoke out earlier. In all, what looked like the remnants of a platoon.

"What happened to you lot?" I asked Griggs.

"Our platoon was tasked with protecting one of you Animorphs, when we were attack by those fighters and they killed the Animorphs and most of the platoon. Those F-22s who bailed you out, bailed us out as well, and we got on this Black Hawk." He replied.

The helicopter jerked suddenly as if to avoid something.

"Sorry to interrupt, but we're under attack!" shouted the pilot, "brace yourselves,"

TSSEEEEWWWW! KAA-BOOOOOM!

"We've been hit!" shouted the pilot, "This is Black Hawk 12, we're going down one and a half clicks north of the General's position!"

The Black Hawk started to spin out of control and the ground came rushing up.

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A/N: As always, tell me what you think.

Loveforwriting: Thanks for the reviews, I have every intention of continuing the story, one of my pet hates on this site is people who write decent stories and don't finish them. Don't worry, I won't kill off all of the Auxiliary Animorphs, personally I though it was cruel of K.A. to kill them all off in the first place. And Tobias will have reasons for not attempting to save them.


	5. Chapter 5: Black Hawk Down

Disclaimer: Animorphs belong to K. and Scholastic (yadda yadda yadda)

Author's Note: -( )- denotes thought-speech

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Chapter 5: Black Hawk Down

As I regained consciousness, I felt a hand roughly shaking me. I groggily opened my eyes and everything was blurry. I made out the shape of a person kneeling down in front of me, but that was it. I blinked several times and my eyes focused.

"…you lazy son of a bitch, we haven't got the time for you to have a nice, relaxing day at the beach!" I heard someone shout. I rolled over and say that Griggs was the one shouting at me.

"Uuhhh, how long have I been morphed?" I asked slowly, my head really hurt, like someone had smashed it with a two-by-four, believe, I know exactly what that feels like.

"I dunno, can't have been more than an hour and a half. Why?" Griggs responded.

"Good," was all I said before demorphing.

My eyesight became clearer as I returned to my hawk form, and I really wish it hadn't, because, twenty feet away, was the body of Private Stacker, or more specifically, what was left of him. The rotor blade had speared through the fuselage of the helicopter and sliced him almost completely in half from the head down. I shut my eyes and remorphed to human.

"How many survived the crash?" I asked Griggs, the only person I could see.

"Including us, five," Griggs replied with a grimace.

"Five!"

"Yep, the pilot was damned lucky though. We landed with the rear end hitting the ground first, so he got away with whiplash," Griggs explained.

"And what about everyone else?" I asked, "What happened to them?"

"First Sergeant Williams was thrown from the helicopter as it spun around, and we haven't found his body yet, so there's still hope. Corporals Taylor and Miller made it out with a few scratches and bruises, I take it you saw what happened to Stacker, PFC Randall is somewhere under the wreckage and I don't even know what happened to the other two," Griggs replied.

"Damn, I liked Williams, and I didn't mind Stacker, but… hell, there gone, and there's nothing we can do for them," I said slowly and remorsefully. In the three years of this war, I thought, I've never lost so many allies so quickly. "Well, we sure as hell can't stay here, they'll have Bug Fighters, Hork-Bajir and Taxxons all over this place soon, so I suggest we get everyone together and try and find some cover,"

Boy does it feel strange to be giving out orders, that's usually Jakes' job.

"On it, sir," Griggs replied quickly.

"Griggs?"

"Yes sir?"

"Don't call me sir,"

"Yes sir,"

Well that reminded me a hell of a lot of Ax, I thought. And that made me wonder what was happening to my fellow Animorphs up on the Pool Ship. Were they all right? Were they dead? I sure as hell hope not, but I had no way of finding out, so all I could do was help with the battle raging in the ruins of our town between the Yeerks and Doubleday and his men.

Several minutes later, all five of us were crouching in the wreckage of the Black Hawk, and they all looked very scared and worried. My face, of course, showed nothing, because after spending three years as a hawk, I've forgotten how to subconsciously make facial expressions, and I got the feeling that my expressionless face gave the others strength, despite that, in truth, I was worried out of my mind.

"So, what do we do now?" asked corporal Taylor, in his strong Australian accent.

"That is a really good question, 'cause I don't really have a clue," I replied.

"Yeah well, we sure as shit can't stay here, that's for sure. I dunno about you guys, but I for one don't like just sitting around waiting for some cockroach-ship to come along and blast us into pieces!" the corporal ranted.

"Shut the hell up Taylor!" Griggs shouted, and stood up. "If you haven't got anything constructive to say, keep your god damned mouth shut, corporal!"

"Actually Griggs, I agree, partly, with… Taylor, was it?" I said evenly, _how the hell does Jake do this_ I wondered. Griggs opened his mouth, but I cut him off. "By partly, I mean that we can't stay here. So I suggest that we head over to the nearest building and discuss this later,"

"Okay," said Griggs.

"Fine by me," said Taylor.

"Alright," the pilot, Lieutenant Havens, managed to say. Poor bastard had a gash going all the way down his side.

"Lets go," said Corporal Millar.

"Hang on, sir, I mean Tobias," said Griggs, "You might need this,"

He handed me the rifle from one of the dead soldiers.

"You do know how this works, right?" he asked sarcastically.

"I've never had to use human weapons before, so no, I don't," I replied.

"Right, this is called an M4A1 rifle with a telescopic sight and under-slung grenade launcher. It has a thirty round clip, extendable buttstock and a quick release button for reloading," Griggs said, indicating to everything on the rifle. I took the rifle and shouldered it uncertainly. He then held out a pistol. "This is a USP .45 sidearm, only for use when you've either you're reloading or have lost your primary weapon. The clip fits in the handle, and you press here to either release the clip, or lock it in place. The pistol is cocked by pulling back the top."

I took the pistol and strapped the holster to my leg and took the helmet and fatigues he was holding out. I looked down and laughed at how stupid I looked. I was wearing bike shorts and a spandex shirt, with urban camouflaged helmet and fatigues and a pistol strapped to my leg.

"What's so funny?" asked Taylor.

"Nothing, its nothing. I just realized how ridiculous I look at the moment," I replied with a laugh, and Taylor started to snigger as he looked at me.

"I see what ya mean," he said, smirking.

"Enough lallygagging, we need to get outta here," Griggs said impatiently.

We crept up over the wreckage and surveyed the surroundings. We had crashed in the middle what was left of a suburban street that seemed strangely familiar, but I couldn't place it because most of the houses were damaged.

"Okay, we make a run for the closest house, number… what is that, 26," I said, squinting to try and make out the number.

"Right, you heard the man, everyone move out on his signal," Griggs ordered.

"Okay…" I said as a Bug Fighter flew past, "NOW!"

We scrambled over the wreckage and sprinted to the house, I yanked open the door, and ran inside. As the door slammed shut, I took a moment to survey the house. It all looked strangely familiar, like I'd been here before. And then my eyes fell on one of the pictures lying on the ground. I bent over and picked it up. I gasped and almost dropped the picture as I recognized who was in the photo. It was Rachel and her family; we were in Rachel's house! No wonder it seemed familiar, I'd spent the last three years flying in and out of this house almost every night we didn't have a mission.

"I'll be right back," I said quietly to the others and went upstairs. I walked into Rachel's bedroom, and realized it was the first time I'd actually walked in through the door, and not worry about being caught by her mother or sisters. I looked around and saw that everything was a mess. Her quote board was on the ground and the post-it notes lying everywhere, her full-length mirror had fallen over, the mirror on the desk had fallen over and broken, her bed was a mess, her closest was empty and her belongings thrown about.

I dropped to my knees and reached under the bed, searching for the suitcase full of clothes for me she kept there. My hand brushed against what felt like the material of a suitcase and I pulled it out. It wasn't a suitcase, but a bag. I opened it and burst out laughing. Inside was a pair of long, black, leather boots, a short, black leather skirt and a corset made of, you guessed it, black leather. _What in the hell is this_ I thought, _did Rachel give in to Marco and actually get the Xena costume, or is this something else, something that no one was meant to see? I gotta ask her about that if – when – I see her again._

I shoved the bag back under the bed and continued searching until I eventually found the suitcase. I opened it, took off the helmet, fatigues and holster and put on a pair of blue jeans and a plain black shirt. I put the military gear back on, and looked for anything useful I could scavenge from her room. I found a mobile phone, and put it in my pocket. I was about to leave, when I noticed a crinkled photo lying on the ground. It was a photo taken of the six of us, as humans, from last Christmas. I noticed that she had folded it so that it only showed me with my arm around her shoulders and her head resting on mine. I loved that Christmas, we were all happy, and, for once, we could leave the war and live the life we had been missing, even if was for only for one day.

"Sir, you all right?" a voice asked from the doorway. I looked up, it was Corporal Millar, "You've been up here for almost twenty minutes. We started to wonder if you'd done a runner or something,"

"No, no, I'm fine. It's just… I knew the people who used to live here, that's all," I said slowly.

"Oh, okay. Hang on, your saying this is the house of one of the Animorphs?" he asked.

"Yep, it's Rachel's house," I said, "Its been empty for almost four months though, because we had to do a runner to the free Hork-Bajir valley when the Yeerks found out we were human,"

"Oh… hey, is that a picture of you lot?" he asked, walking over to look at the photo I had in my hand, "Wow, you really are just a bunch of kids aren't you? Hey, is that one Rachel, the one you've got your arm around?"

"Yep, that's Rachel, or Xena, if you asked Marco. That's him," I said, pointing to Marco, who was making a stupid face, "On my right is Jake and Cassie, on the left of Rachel is, of course, Marco and lastly, on Marco's left, is Ax, or Aximili-Esgarrouth-Isthill, the resident, un-infested, Andalite, in his human morph." I stood there for a moment, thinking whether or not they were alright, and whether Rachel was safe, where ever she was. "Well, best not keep the others waiting,"

With that, we turned and walked down the stairs.

* * *

A/N: As always, please review, feedback is welcome.

I'm adding these two new chapters in compensation for the fact that I can't upate for a while, due to school pressures

Loveforwriting: Thanks as always. Also, I love to thank people for their feedback (just to show that I care what you think).


	6. Chapter 6: Not According to Plan!

Disclaimer: Thus follows the usual legal crap: The Animorphs are not mine, they belong to K.A.A. and Scholastic

* * *

Chapter 6: Not According to Plan!

"Okay, we need to decide what to do now," I said, once we were downstairs.

"Well, I think we should follow the Generals' orders and go and get them out of the shit, I suppose," Griggs offered his opinion.

"Well, that seems to be the best idea, so we go with that. Where did he say they were holed up again?" I said.

"The high school," Havens wheezed.

"Okay, well, I know where we are, so I've got my bearings. I know the route from here to the school, and it shouldn't take us more than twenty, twenty-five minutes to get there," I said, "If we don't run into any trouble, that is," I added.

"Well, can we get in contact with the General, he might have sent someone to look for us," Griggs said.

"Oh, sure, lemme just pull out my magical radio and give him a call," Corporal Taylor said sarcastically.

"Shut up Taylor," I said, "We don't have the time for your comments, besides, ye of little faith, Rachel came through for us, she just happened to leave behind her mobile."

"Firstly I resent being told to shut up by someone not in the Army. Secondly, who the hell is Rachel, and thirdly, how did you just happen to get her mobile?" Taylor said.

"Firstly, shut up. Secondly, Rachel is an Animorph," I said.

"And his girlfriend," Millar interrupted.

"Thank you Millar," I said tolerably, "As I was saying, thirdly, this is Rachel's old house and she left her mobile behind, when we ran from the city,"

"Oh," was all Taylor said.

"Well, I think it can't hurt to try and call the General. Here, gimme the phone," said Griggs. I passed him the phone, and he punched in a number and waited while it rang.

"General, sir, this is Staff Sergeant Griggs, we need to know your current position. We are on foot and we can't stay here for long," Griggs said. "The high school, yes sir… yes sir… yes sir… I'll tell him, sir… thank you, sir. Bye sir," with that he hung up and turned around. "General's still at the high school, but the place has gone to shit, he needs us there now. Also, he has sent James to look for us, so he told me to tell you to be on the lookout for him, 'cause you know what to look for,"

"Yep, I know what to look for. Havens, you good to walk?" I asked.

"Yeah… I think so," he said, getting up, "Ah, that hurts like a sun of a bitch."

"Come on, we need to get moving. Taylor, help Havens,"

"But…" he started to argue.

"Don't start, now come on!" I said, opening the front door and taking a look around. "The coast's clear,"

With that, we sneaked out the door, and proceeded down the street. After ten minutes, Miller stopped.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Sshhh, can't you hear that?" he said. I strained my pathetic human ears and caught the faint sounds of gunfire and explosions.

"The General! Its coming from the direction of the high school," I shouted, "We have to move, now!" We ran the rest of the way and got there within five minutes.

We stopped as we ran over the hill near the school, and surveyed the sight before us. It looked like it was the last garrison of human soldiers, because there was the three Abrams tanks there, the remaining helicopters hovering above the battlefield, gunning down the Yeerks on the ground, and the F-22's streaked the sky as they destroyed Bug Fighter after Bug Fighter.

-(Hey, you five!)- I 'heard' someone call.

-(James?)- I 'called' back.

-(Tobias! Glad you could make it! We need the slightest bit of help here!)-

-(Where are you? Or, should I say, what are you?)-

-(I'm in battle morph, defending the General. We are getting the hell out of here)-

-(And go where, James?)- I asked –(If we lose, where are we supposed to go, huh?)-

-(I… I… I honestly don't know, but we can't hold out!)-

-(Yes, we can. We've got to hold out until Jake and the others capture the Pool Ship and come back for us)-

-(All right, you win, we'll stay)- He said –(To the death?)-

-(To the death)- I replied grimly.

To the others, I said "Well, I think its time for the cavalry,"

"Aye, sir," said Griggs, "How 'bout we go round their rear and strike them there?"

"Perfect idea, lets do it!" I said, with a wicked grin on my face.

* * *


	7. Chapter 7: Aboard The Pool Ship

Disclaimer: As always, the Animorphs belong to K. and Scholastic Inc.

Author's Note: -( )- Denotes thought-speech

* * *

Chapter 7: Aboard the Pool Ship

My name is Jake. Jake Berenson, the leader of the Animorphs, and I was kicking myself something epic.

The war is at its end, and this is the final battle. After we destroyed the ground-based Yeerk Pool, the Visser One ordered the destruction of most of our town so they could land their Pool Ship, and thus give us the biggest target. So we attacked, and the mission has been screwed since the beginning, right after the Pool Ship took off with Tobias outside, and with Rachel with Tom, we are down to only the four of us, Erek and Toby and the free Hork-Bajir. But, of course, Erek can't fight and Toby's people are gonna be busy with the next part of the plan.

-(Well this is just fucking marvelous, isn't it!)- Marco sarcastically said –(There is now only four of us, four, to take the fucking bridge. I mean, is that even possible!? Four people to take out the most heavily guarded place on the ship, apart from the pool itself! I mean, come on!)-

-(You done yet?)- I asked

-(No I'm not fuckin' well not done yet!)-

-(Fine then)- I said diplomatically, before shouting –(Marco, shut the fuck up!)-

-(Okay, I'll be good)- he replied meekly. I rarely shout, so he must have got the message that I'm pissed off.

-(Prince Jake, if I might be allowed to ask…)- Ax started

-(Just spit it out, Ax)-

-(What exactly do we do now?)-

-(We continue as planned, only everyone is gonna have to fight a lot harder)-

We were hiding in a ventilation shaft near the engine room of the Pool Ship as Visser One prepared to douse it in Dracon fire, in an attempt to kill us. In truth, this was part of our very elaborate plan.

-(Open the doors,)- I heard the Visser order.

There was a pneumatic hiss as the blast doors slid open, followed by blinding volleys of Dracon fire.

-(Okay, move along the tunnel and stay quite,)- I said as we all made the transition from human to our battle morphs, -(Toby, once the fire stops, attack. Don't stop, we need you to keep them busy. If it comes to it, fight to the last, do you hear Toby, to the last,)- I need to stop making a habit of condemning my friends and allies.

We ran quietly down the tunnel and down through a vent Ax opened with his tail. We burst out of the room and tore off down the corridor, away from engineering and to the pool itself. On our way, we encountered very little resistance, only a few spooked patrols. Most ran, but some decided to stand and fight, but they were cut down in seconds.

-(Now this is payback. We've taken three years of shit from these slugs, and now we can finally, _finally_, give back to them,)- Marco shouted, jovially. –(Man, Rachel's gonna be pissed she missed this!)-

-(Where is she anyway? I know her, and she wouldn't miss this for the world)- Cassie said quietly, -(Jake, where is she? And why won't you tell me?)-

-(All right, I'll honest. She's with Tom, I couldn't let him have the Blade Ship,)- I said sullenly.

-(JAKE! I can't believe you! When did you become so ruthless?)- said Cassie, shocked by what I'd done, -(You are very lucky Tobias isn't here, or else he'd kill you,)-

-(I know, I know!)- I shouted, -(There's nothing that can be done, so lets get on with what we can do, shall we?)-

There was a ringing silence after that. As we neared the Pool, we encountered several Hork-Bajir guards, looking incredibly nervous and muttering about the fight in engineering. I charged straight at the closest Hork-Bajir and sunk my teeth into his neck, piercing his jugular and I felt the warm blood flow into my mouth. I leapt off of him and swiped at the next one. I left several gashes down his chest and a wolf leapt up and bit the back of the Hork-Bajir's neck, paralyzing it.

After the brief fight, we went through the doors and there we were, in the holy of holys, the Yeerk Pool. It was over two hundred yards in diameter, and it was perfectly round. The pool was ringed with cages full of uncooperative hosts, with up to twenty-five hosts in each.

-(Marco, the cages!)- I yelled, with the hosts we might have a chance of taking the ship.

-(On it, man)- he replied happily

"Andalite!" cried a Hork-Bajir voice.

The human-controllers drew their Dracon Beams, but hesitated to fire in their sanctum. We tore through them before they could react, and Cassie tore up one of the Taxxons so that it was set upon by its brothers.

-(Prince Jake)- Ax said –(Inside that booth, those must be the controls for the pool)-

-(Yeah? And?)- I didn't get it

-(They must occasionally repair the pool itself,)- Ax said –(That would mean draining it)-

-(Lets go!)-

A bonus. Another new element. Was that a good thing or a bad thing?

Good. Good. Maybe. I knew the way the plan played out, knew what would happen. Rachel. Tom. Inevitable. Maybe new elements, maybe the freed prisoners, maybe this new opening, maybe the inevitable need not occur. Maybe we could save her.

The booth Ax had spotted looked absurdly like a toll-collector's booth on the highway. It was clear plastic and perched just above the pool, jutting slightly out. There was a single Hork-Bajir inside. There were eight Hork-Bajir outside, unarmed but ready for trouble, ready to stand and fight.

No time to think, attack! Ax and I raced straight at them. I slashed and opened my nearest foe from belly to neck. Ax's tail whipped. Cassie came bounding up behind us and launched herself into the battle.

But the area was too narrow, we were hemmed in. Like being shoved down inside a

blender set on puree. The Hork-Bajir were all around us, beating us down, slashing, cutting, pounding, tearing at us with their clawed feet.

No way to get free! I couldn't strike without hitting Ax who was shoved hard against me. And then, on my back, snarling but helpless, I

saw a Hork-Bajir leap high over my head and land like a mosh-pit surfer on my tormentors. The prisoners! One of the Hork-Bajir prisoners

Marco had released.

Marco was there now, too, but most of all, itwas the freed prisoners. They turned the tide, attacking their tormentors with awesome rage. Ax was on his hooves again, bloody, hurt, but well enough to swing his tail and cut the lock to the control booth.

A gorilla yanked the door open and said, -(Hi, there! You want to live? Then lie down right now!)- He grabbed the unresisting Hork-Bajir and threw him out into the fracas.

Then Marco held the door open like a hotel doorman and grinned a rubbery gorilla grin.

-(Gentlemen?)-

Ax pushed past me, began punching at active screens and arrays of controls.

-(There is a flush sequence,)- he said. -(I have to override the safety protocols.)-

He turned his stalk eyes to me even as his main eyes guided swift, nimble fingers.

-(It can be done.)-

-(Okay,)- I said.

-(The pool is full to capacity. These are the Yeerks that were rescued from the earth-based Yeerk pool. Plus the bulk of the unhosted Yeerks recently transported here.)-

-(Some reason you're telling me all this, Ax-man?)-

-(Jake, there are seventeen thousand, three hundred seventy-two Yeerks in this pool.)-

That rocked me. Visser One had to know we were here, on the loose. He had to run for the bridge and not stay to win the fight in engineering. Seventeen thousand. Living creatures. Thinking creatures. How could I give this order? Even for victory. Even to save Rachel. How could I give this kind of order?

_They could have stayed home, _I thought. _No one__ had asked them to come to Earth. Not my fault. Not my fault, theirs._

No more than they deserved.

Aliens. Parasites. Subhuman.

-(Flush them,)- I said.

* * *

A/N: Sorry about the wait for this chapter, but I've had a hell of a lot of school commitments that I've had to take care of, and I've only been able to put this up due to a teachers strike and a lack of assignments. Anyway, as always, read and review, tell me what you thought.


	8. Chapter 8: The Bridge

Disclaimer: I'm really getting sick of this, but oh well. Animorphs are not mine, they are K. and Scholastic's

Author's Note: -( )- Denotes thought-speech

* * *

Chapter 8: The Bridge

My name is Marco, and I watched silently as Jake gave the order to flush the seventeen plus thousand Yeerks into space. I watched as they all froze and became a crystal graveyard around the ship.

-(Let's go)- Jake said quietly, and we ran. We ran to the bridge for the final confrontation of the war: the cornering of Visser One.

-(Well, if he didn't know we're here before, he does now,)- I said, trying to lift the dark mood that hung over us like a cloud.

-(That wasn't funny Marco,)- Cassie replied

-(It wasn't meant to be,)- I lied; annoyed that no one got the joke. Honestly, am I the only one in this group that's played "Halo"?

He was on the bridge when we got there, our old enemy. Visser One and a handful of Controllers, human and Hork-Bajir. But he seemed almost alone.

The main view screen showed a cloud of sparkling ice shards.

Visser One watched it, almost oblivious to us, though he surely knew we were there. Finally, he turned, and looked at Jake with all four of his Andalite

eyes.

-(So,)- he said almost softly, -(still not dead.)-

-(No, Visser. Not quite dead.)- Jake replied.

-(You're the one called Jake, aren't you? The brother of my security chief's host body.)-

-(That's me.)- He nodded slightly. He motioned toward the viewscreen as the picture changed. –(As you see, my Blade ship is approaching.)-

-(I don't think they'll be much help to you, Visser.)-

-(No. It took me a while to see what had happened. But I see it now. The Blade ship will attack, and I am helpless, unable to control this ship.)- He laughed mirthlessly.

-(Only a traitor could have beaten me. I was not beaten by you, human, or by your pet Andalite there. I was undone by my trusting nature.)-

I laughed then stopped myself. Now is so not the time to be laughing.

-(Only another Yeerk could have beaten me, and then only by the lowest treason. I was not beaten by you. Never by you.)-

-(Visser, you can still get off one or two shots at the Blade ship. Take out his engines.)-

-(Yes, we will try that very thing,)- he said dryly. -(But you see, someone is bleeding power out of the Dracon beams. Power is being diverted. One of the traitors at work, I suppose. We will get off one or two shots, but at one-quarter strength. Will they be enough? Unlikely.)-

I knew that Jake was probably raging at Erek right now, telling him to stop draining the power. Stupid peace-loving android, because of him, we all might die.

Visser One sighed. –(My one consolation is that when the traitor murders me with my own ship, it will at least finally be the end of you!)-

"Targeting the Blade ship's starboard engine. We are ready to fire," one of the humans reported.

Visser One waved a lazy hand. –(Fire.)-

On the screen I saw the beam reach out through space. Once. Twice. Both missed. The Blade ship reacted swiftly to avoid the slow retargeting of the Pool ship's big Dracon cannon. The Blade ship fired. The explosion reverberated through the ship.

"Engine number one is destroyed, Visser."

The Blade ship fired again. Again. Two more explosions.

"We are without propulsion, Visser."

-(Yes. I noticed that,)- Visser One said. –(No engines. And all our brothers in the pool

murdered by these humans.)-

"We are being hailed."

-(Of course,)- Visser One muttered. –(By all means. We must play it out.)-

It was Tom's face that appeared on the screen. And Tom's voice that spoke. But the smug, hard, derisive tone was that of a Yeerk.

"You seem to be experiencing some engine trouble, Visser," Tom gloated.

-(The Empire will track you down and kill you, you do understand that, I hope?)-

"Oh, I doubt it. I think the Empire will have its hands full," Tom's Yeerk said cheerfully. "The Andalite fleet is rather close by. It's possible that I misled you on that point."

Then he caught sight of Jake. His face paled. His eyes went wide. All at once, he knew.

"You're not dead!"

-(I noticed the same thing,)- Visser One said dryly.

Tom snapped an order to his crew. "Bring us around to target the Pool ship's bridge. Do it! Now! Now! Bring us around!"

-(Rachel...)- Jake said. -(Go.)-

-(Jake… you must have a way of getting her out alive!)- Cassie pleaded

-(Ax, get down to the hanger as fast as you can, commandeer a Bug Fighter and get Rachel off that ship!)- Jake ordered. Good to see that he could still make on the spot decisions. Ax galloped off through the doors and disappeared from view.

* * *

A/N: Loved it? Hated it? tell me what you thought about it.


	9. Chapter 9: Victory Denied

Disclaimer: The Animorphs to not belong to me, they belong to K..

Author's Note: -( )- Denotes thought-speak

* * *

Chapter 9: Victory Denied

My name is Rachel.

I guess everyone gets scared when his or her time comes; no one really wants to die. But, I guess, some things are inevitable.

I was a flea sitting on Tom's head, listening to him panic about Jake, when I heard Jake say -(Rachel… Go)-

I jumped off of Tom's head and started to hop away from him. Although the flea only has like ten brain cells, it can put up a hell of a resistance when you try to take it away from the scent of blood.

I dragged myself away from Tom and went into the darkness. I kept going until I thought I would be safe to demorph. I started to demorph. The first thing to change was my height. I went from being a quarter of an inch high to about three and a half feet in less than twenty seconds. Next, came my eyes, and as they appeared, I saw that I was crouched under a large desk of some kind. Luckily, everyone's attention was on the viewscreen, which showed the Pool Ship's bridge with the Visser standing next to a Bengal Tiger.

As the last parts of the flea disappeared, I started to change into my grizzly morph. I wasn't going for subtlety here, I was going for the kill. As I grew, I had to move out from under the desk, or I'd be noticed and left vulnerable to attack. The shaggy fur now covered my huge body and my claws came shooting out of my fingers. Now was the time to strike.

Someone must have noticed me because someone shrieked "Animorph!"

You know, after all these years of being called Andalites, it felt strange to be called what Marco named us way back in the beginning: Animorphs, Idiot Teenagers with a Death Wish.

In response, I said -(That's right, genius: Animorph)-

And I did what I do best; I attacked.

I lowered my head and charged straight for Tom. I barreled straight into him and threw him into the viewscreen. Not hard enough to kill him, but enough to do some damage.

TSSSEEWWW

Some genius hard decided to bring a gun to a knife fight, and I lashed out at the Dracon wielding controller and dove my claws clean through him.

Tom made a dash for the exit, but I charged after him and shoulder-barged him away from the door. I dropped down onto him and blood spurted out of his mouth and nose, I drew my paw back to finish him, but out of nowhere, a lioness jumped straight onto my back. I reached behind me and grabbed the controller on my back and flung it to the ground and drove my claws through its skull.

I turned back to Tom, but he was gone, and there was a really large polar bear in his place. I swung my paw into its face and left several claw marks down it.

FWAAPP

I heard a snap like a bullwhip, and one of the bear's front legs fell to the ground. Shortly followed by its head.

-(Ax! What are you doing here!)- I yelled

-(Prince Jake sent me as your backup)- he replied, whilst swiping at the controller in the buffalo morph, taking off one of its horns.

-(Great!)- I said jovially –(Um, stupid question, but how are we supposed to get out of here?)-

-(In the Bug Fighter that I used to get here)- he said, as if I was stupid or something.

-(Oh, okay. That makes sense)-

-(Lets just finish this fight first, shall we?)-

-(Of course)-

In a matter of minutes, Ax and I had killed the rest of the controllers, leaving us with a badly wounded Tom.

-(It ends now Yeerk!)- Ax said

"Please no! I'll… I'll… I'm sorry! Please let me live!" he said pitifully.

-(No deal Yeerk)- I said -(Sorry Tom)- I added before killing him with one blow.

-(Now, lets get the hell outta here)- I said before demorphing. We turned around and ran out of the bridge and along several corridors. Ax lead the way down to the Bug Fighter and ran inside to power up all the systems.

"Lets go," I said simply and he piloted the fighter out of the hanger and towards the Pool Ship.

"Ax, look!" I yelled, pointing out of the viewscreen. It was a group of seven Andalite Dome Ships. They looked like palm trees, with their long, thin bodies and the dome resting on top.

-(It appears the fleet has finally arrived)- Ax said, the joy in his voice barely contained. Then something strange happened, all of the other Bug Fighters flew out of the hanger and then stopped. After several minutes, the Bug Fighters suddenly self-destructed.

"Um… Any idea what just happened, Ax?" I said, slightly stunned.

-(I believe it could have been part of the agreement with the Andalites,)- he replied slowly.

He flew us back into the hanger and we hurried back to the bridge. On our way up, we passed what looked like the scene of a major battle, with dead Hork-Bajir bodies littering the floor, and blood plastering the walls. I saw a few of the free Hork-Bajir with Toby and several controllers that had surrendered.

We continued running, and finally reached the bridge.

"Rachel, Ax, how nice of you to finally decide to join us here with our spoils of war," said Marco. He glanced around at the bridge of the Pool Ship and at Visser One. Well, everything has gone well, I think.

"I take it you know about the Andalite Fleet sitting outside, then?" I asked.

"It isn't too obvious really," Marco said sarcastically, "I mean we did have to blow up all the Bug Fighters just to gain their trust,"

"Shut up, Marco," I shot back. The exact moment I said that, the viewscreen started to brighten.

-(The Andalite Fleet is hailing us, Prince Jake,)- Ax said, -(What should I do?)-

"Answer them, Ax," Jake ordered, "Time to meet the Andalites,"

"You mean the high-and-mighty, arrogant 'kings' of the universe?" Marco joked.

"Shut up Marco," was the only answer he got.

-(This is Captain-Prince Asculan-Semitur-Langor of the Dome Ship _Elfangor_. We have taken into consideration the fact that you have kept your side of the bargain, we are coming aboard to discuss your terms,)- The Andalite said shortly, before the screen went black again.

We sat and waited for the Andalite shuttle to arrive. In the meantime, however, there were more pressing matters at hand.

"Hang on," I said slowly, "Where the hell is Tobias?"

"He's…" Cassie started, but her throat caught.

-(He is down on the surface, fighting with the humans and the Auxiliary Animorphs,)- Ax explained bluntly, -(He was left outside when the soldiers arrived earlier than expected and he was thrown out,)-

"Is there any way to get in contact with him?" I asked hopefully.

"Umm… we haven't tried yet," Jake answered.

"Well… try, then," I said impatiently.

"Ax, see what you can do," Jake ordered.

-(I will try, Prince Jake)- Ax replied.

"Don't call me Prince, Ax,"

-(Yes, Prince Jake,)-

Ax stepped up to the computer and started to type away. We all waited nervously, I more than any. After all, that was my boyfriend down there.

-(I think I have it,)- he said at last.

"Can you put it up on the screen?" I asked

-(It is a radio broadcast, Rachel,)- he said, as if I was stupid.

"Oh…" I said

"Hah, the mighty Xena, cut down by the Ax-man!"

"Shut up, Marco,"

"Aye aye, ma'am,"

Through the speakers came the sound of radio static.

"Hello, anyone there?" Marco asked. I shot him an annoyed look. "What? I've always wanted to do that,"

"Shut up, Marco,"

"Do you know how many times you've said that since you got here?" he asked.

"Shut up Marco,"

"This is Staff Sergeant Griggs, do you kids realize that this is a strictly military band?" came a gruff, annoyed voice.

"Sorry sergeant, but we are looking for Tobias, the Animorph," I said calmly.

"Hang on," the sergeant said, "Oi, Tobias! We someone on the radio asking for you!"

"Yeah, well, tell them I'll talk to them in a sec. Okay?" came Tobias' voice, followed by several bursts of gunfire and the sound of a Hork-Bajir screaming. "Okay, now I can talk,"

"Here," said Griggs, "By the way, that's your thirty-second kill,"

"Yeah, I know, but who's counting?" Tobias said, and then he said to us, "Hello, who is it?"

"Tobias!" I yelled before I could stop myself.

"Rachel!" he yelped, "Where the hell are you?"

"I could say the same thing to you," I replied.

"Well," he said, "at the moment, I'm up to my ass in Taxxons and Hork-Bajir trying to save the Doubleday's ass. What about you?"

"I'm standing on the bridge of the Pool Ship, with all of the others about to negotiate with the Andalites,"

"Oh, good," he said, his voice picking up a bit, "Once your done, you can bring that thing down here and fry the rest of the Yeerks!"

"Okay Tobias, it's a date," I joked

"Well, if I knew it was, I…" he said as the radio cut off.

"Tobias? Tobias! TOBIAS!?" I yelled at the microphone.

"I don't think he's there Rachel," Cassie said neutrally.

-(The Andalites have docked,)- Ax announced

"Okay, any suggestions on about how we go about this?" Jake asked Ax.

-(Well, do not try to insult them, so keep Marco's mouth shut unless it's constructive)- Ax said.

"Does mine ears deceive my, or did Ax just make a joke?" Marco asked excitedly

-(Do what with the what now?)- Ax replied

"Oh, god damn it!" Marco said.

At that moment, the bridge doors opened, and about a dozen Andalites came in, and swept the room with their weapons, resting their aim on the unconscious Visser.

-(Greetings, Captain Prince Asculan-Semitur-Langor)- Ax said.

-(Greetings, _Aristh _Aximili-Esgarrough-Isthill)- the older Andalite responded. He then turned to Jake. -(I understand that you are the one called Jake?)- he asked.

"Yes, that's me," Jake answered, "I'm the leader of the Animorphs,"

-(Okay, introductions aside, what are the terms that you wish to offer?)- God, talk about to the point.

"Well, the Yeerks aboard the Pool Ship have surrendered, and wish to know if they will be allowed safe haven, access to the Kandrona, and all provisions made to cater for them," Jake started.

-(Hmm… we'll see. What else?)-

"Our Taxxon allies wish to have access to the morphing power, so that they can escape their Taxxon form, and no longer live as Taxxons," Jake continued.

-(Hmm… unfortunately that request will have to go through the Electorate. So don't be too hopeful. Anything else?)-

"Umm…" Jake started to say, when one of the Andalite officers jumped forward.

-(Sorry to interrupt sir, but the Dome Ship just reported sightings of a large Yeerk fleet exiting Z-Space on the other side of this planet's moon!)-

Asculan looked startled for a moment, before shouting, -(Everyone back to the shuttles. NOW!)-

"Sir? What about our allies?" Jake asked.

-(Are there any craft left in the hanger)-

"Ax?" Jake asked

-(I believe so, Prince Jake)-

"Good. Ax, tell _all_ of our allies to get to the hanger and get aboard one of the ships," Jake ordered.

-(Yes, Prince Jake)-

"I think running would be a very good idea," Marco said.

We ran as quickly as possible towards the hanger. The Andalites arrived before we did, and they were waiting in their shuttle for us.

"Ax, pilot that Yeerk ship!"

-(Yes, Prince Jake)-

Ax ran off towards the ship full of Hork-Bajir and, hopefully, Erek. We jumped inside the Andalite shuttle just as the pilot informed us of the Yeerk fleet's arrival.

We exited the hanger and strapped ourselves in, as the pilot performed some incredible maneuvers to avoid the incoming fire from the Yeerk cruisers.

I glanced out of the front window, and looked in horror as I tried to count the cruisers. There were at least forty of them, and more appearing from behind the moon. I knew then and there that we had no hope of winning, and we were going to leave Earth, and we might not return.

It was then it hit me, and I started to do something that I, Xena: Warrior Princess, never did; I started to cry. The reason? Tobias was still down there, and he didn't even know we were safe.

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A/N: As always, read and review. Please tell me what you thought.

Capnnerefir: Here is that Rachel chapter that I said was coming up.


	10. Chapter 10: A New Game

Disclaimer: The Animorphs belong to K., not me. If they did, I wouldn't be writing this. Hell, if I wrote the Animorphs, it would be crap, and not worthy of anything. (I thought I'd mix things up a little...)

Author's Note: -( )- Denotes thought-speech

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Chapter 10: A New Game

Crayak and the Ellimist looked on as the majority of the Animorphs fled the Earth System with the Andalites, leaving Earth to the clutches of the Yeerk Fifth Fleet.

**"Ellimist, I grow tired of this conflict over Earth, although it is apparent that I have the upper hand,"** Crayak boomed over the dimensional void that he, his servant the Drode and the Ellimist resided in.

**"How about a challenge, then, Crayak,"** the Ellimist replied, bursting into 'sight'.

**"What kind of challenge, Ellimist?"** Crayak responded curiously.

**"A battle of champions, Crayak, as always,"** Ellimist responded

**"Hmmm… I must admit, I do enjoy these battles of champions. What are the stakes?"** Crayak asked.

**"How about the one whose champion wins has control of Earth once and for all, and the other must abandon all attempts to claim it."**

**"Well, this Earth business has gone on long enough, I must say, so I accept. What other conditions? What are the levels of interference?"**

**"Well, condition number one: we only have one champion each,"** Ellimist listed.

**"Anyone we want?"** Asked Crayak

**"Within reason. They must be involved in the battle of Earth,"**

**"Fair enough,"**

**"Condition number two: the champion may receive direct help from any person, organization or race that they are in alliance with,"**

**"Naturally, Naturally,"**

**"Now, the levels of interference. We can't, as always, directly interfere. An obvious example would be killing or eliminating certain items or assets in the game,"**

**"As per our rules, Ellimist," **Crayak responded, slightly crestfallen.

**"However, we can allow them access to technology that will even the playing field. For example: I would give the humans space-flight technology if needs-be,"**

**"I'll accept that," **Crayak accepted, **"To what extent can we interfere technologically?"**

**"No biogenetic diseases, no neurotoxins, no psychic-based weapons, no super-weapons. You know, nothing that can potentially destroy Earth,"**

**"All right…" **Crayak conceded, sounding like a defeated human four-year old. **"What about…"**

**"No Howlers," **Ellimist snapped.

**"Oh, okay,"**

**"So, do you want to play this out?"** The Ellimist asked.

**"Of course. Now, one condition of my own. We tell each other our champions right here and right now,"** Crayak said.

**"Of course. My champion is…"** The Ellimist pondered over his choices. The only humans he could really trust to fulfill his game were the Animorphs. The only problem was that five of them had just exited the system with the Andalites, and to take only one of them would cause some trouble, as they would worry about the one who went missing. And, because of his own rules, he couldn't inform the others, so this left only one reasonable choice. The only problem, his potential champion didn't really trust him. Then again, he hadn't given him reason to.

**"Well Ellimist, I have waited several millennia. Do you have your champion?"** He asked.

**"I have chosen the Animorph called Tobias,"**

**"Hmmm… Elfangor's time-twisted son, a reasonable choice. But are you sure he will accept the game?"**

**"He will, don't worry. What about your champion?"** The Ellimist asked

**"Hmmm… I choose Visser One, the Yeerk, and if I may, give him an Andalite host body of his creation,"** Crayak said.

**"Of course, Crayak. Now we must inform our champions,"** With that, both Crayak and the Ellimist disappeared, and time started to run again.

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A/N: Hmmm... and so the plot thickens. Sorry for the short chapter, but the next one will more than compensate for it.

Fletty: Thanks for the review, I glad that you like the story, but, my representations of the personalities are gonna change a bit as the story progresses, but I think you will still like it.

Capnnerefir: I propose you a challenge. When I have written more of this, I want to see if you can find the third-party references that I have put in my story, just like I did for yours.


	11. Chapter 11: The Beginning

Disclaimer: The Animorphs series belongs to K. (God, I'm sick of these, and I've only written 11!)

Author's Note: -( )- Denotes thought-speech

* * *

Chapter 11: The Beginning

My gun flashed repeatedly as I kept a steady rate of fire on the seemingly endless hordes of Hork-Bajir and Taxxons that were advancing on General Doubleday's position.

CLICK! CLICK! CLICK!

"Griggs! You don't happen to have a spare clip, do ya?" I asked Griggs, as the final bullet left the chamber. He threw me another clip and I slammed it home, and clicked the locking mechanism shut.

"Would this be a bad time to tell you that you have to fire in short, controlled bursts, and that, unlike shooter games, you won't magically find ammo for your gun when your almost out?" he said with a laugh.

"Yeah your right, now really is a bad time," I said whilst firing off a controlled burst into the chest of an incoming Hork-Bajir, sending a spray of blood flying out as the bullets ripped his vital organs. After three years of fighting with teeth, claws and talons, fighting with a gun was almost like cheating. Almost.

Several of the remaining jets whooshed over-head and bombed the advancing Yeerks, causing them to break and retreat for the third time since they had arrived, almost three hours ago. I leant against the wall I had been using for cover, and collapsed to the ground from exhaustion. It had been a _very _long day.

I spared a second to look up at the sky, just to check on the Pool Ship. It was still in the atmosphere, about several miles in the air. As I watched, I saw something that would have caused me to fall to the ground if I hadn't already have been sitting down.

The Pool Ship burst into flames all along one side, and was slowly falling back down to the ground. _Oh, god damn it, _I thought _If that thing hits the ground, it's gonna kill all of us!_ Taylor was watching my face, and when he saw the look of horror on my face, he turned to see what it was I was staring at.

"Holy hell!" was all he seemed able to yell, as he saw it as well.

"Leave the cussin' to the professionals, son!" yelled Griggs from inside the intact part of the building.

"Sarge, you gotta see this…" Taylor yelled back weakly.

"What is it Taylor…" he said, walking outside. He stopped dead in his tracks, "Oh fuck! We are so screwed if that thing hits us,"

"My thoughts exactly, sergeant," I responded.

As we watched, completely dumbstruck, I remembered that radio conversation I had had earlier with Rachel and the others; they were still on board! _What the hell had gone wrong?_ I though to myself. Then, out of nowhere, several bright lances of light struck through the air and caused the Pool Ship to be lined with explosions. It careened a little before completely exploding, sending debris flying across the sky.

I felt hot prickles on my face and I realized that I was crying. I let the tears come, and I mourned the loss of all of my friends. As I sat there, I thought about whom it was that I just lost. Jake, the first person that I could have honestly have called a friend. Cassie, the kind, considerate animal-lover who helped me survive the first few months as a hawk. Marco, the joker, although we weren't that close, we were still friends and comrades; I was going to miss him. Ax, my _shorm_, my best friend, the only uncle that had never beaten me, and actually cared about me. And finally, Rachel. She had been the first person who truly cared about me, she had been there when I tried to commit suicide shortly after I got stuck as a Red-Tail. She had been the person who had worried about me when I got captured by Taylor. She had been the only one who didn't show her pity, and she had told me that they had heard me being tortured, and how much that had hurt her. She had been my girlfriend, and I never got to tell her that I loved her. And now, she was gone. They were all gone. Dead. All of them.

"Hey, Tobias? Tobias? Hello, earth to Tobias. Come in Tobias!" Havens wheezed. I looked up, and I guess the tears were still flowing, because he asked "Hey, you alright?"

I sighed, "No, not really. But I honestly don't want to talk about. How about you? You took a beating in the crash,"

"I was lucky, nothing more than a few flesh wounds, some bruising and a couple of broken ribs. That's why I can't breath and talk very well," he said with a grimace.

"So, what did you want anyway, Havens?" I asked. "Havens? Havens!" it was only then that I noticed that everything was still and quiet. No sounds of men shouting, screaming or yelling, or the occasional cracks of sniper rifles. Everything was dead silent and still. And I knew exactly why.

"All right, what is it this time Ellimist? Come to offer me a choice that isn't a choice, or how about another broken promise?" I shouted.

**"When have I ever broken my promises, Tobias?"** Came the voice of the all-powerful weakling. Can you tell that I don't like him yet, or am I being too subtle?

"Need I answer that question Ellimist?" I said. It was funny; I was talking like this to a being how could not only eliminate me from the space-time continuum, but all reference of my bloodline as well. Not that he hadn't done most of that already.

**"I come with an offer to you and humanity." **He said.

"Uh-huh, what is it this time? Found another planet to whisk us off to?" I said, annoyed.

**"No, not at all. I offer you the chance to become the champion of mankind, and defeat the Yeerks once and for all, and keep Earth safe."** His booming voice said.

"Hmmm…" not what I was expecting. The next second, the air split and he appeared, in a different guise. Instead of his usual old man disguise, he was a tall, humanoid, with long hair and a comical beard.

"I offer you the chance to become my champion in my game with Crayak to rid humanity of the Yeerks," he repeated himself.

"Well… what's in it for me?" what did I honestly have to loose? "Do I get my dead friends back? Or are you gonna screw me over again?"

"I can not give back to you what is still alive," he said cryptically. I felt a wave of relief wash over me as the meaning of the words sunk in. They were still alive! "But I can aid you and the rest of humanity in this game,"

Okay, it must be big if he was willing to go against his principles and help the human race directly.

"Alright. What is this game then?" I asked, now I was curious.

"This is the final game for Earth. The winner takes Earth and all of its inhabitants, and can do whatever they wish with them and the other cannot interfere," he said, "Now, if Crayak wins, it will mean that every human will be enslaved by the Yeerks, and the galaxy with have to deal with the problem of over six billion Yeerks running rampant,"

The mere concept of that idea frightened me. Firstly because the human race would be enslaved, just like the Hork-Bajir. Secondly, because there would be six billion controllers plaguing the galaxy; the Andalites would be crushed in months.

"All right, I'll play. What do I get in return, if you can't give me my friends?" I asked, grudgingly accepting his offer.

"I will give you and humanity everything that will be needed to fight off the invading Yeerk fleets. I will provide ship design schematics, the ability to colonize planets, the ability to terra-form the planets called Mars and Venus. I will provide humanity with weapons, equipment, resources and the desire to fight," after he said all that, I felt a bit overwhelmed. He was actually helping us.

"You really want to save Earth, and the human race, don't you," I said to the Ellimist.

"As I once said, in a thousand, thousand worlds, there is no greater beauty than Earth. And the human race, although primitive, is capable of understanding and a will so indomitable, coupled with its sense of compassion and loyalty; humanity is unlike any race before it. Humanity deserves the opportunity to survive in the universe," his speech was moving, and he clearly meant it all.

"What do I get personally?" I pressed

"I will give you… for lack of a better term, abilities," he said

"Such as…" I said, eagerly.

"I will give you unlimited morphing time, your human form as your proper form, as well as a few special gifts that I haven't given to an individual for the last one hundred and forty-six million years, of you time. I will give you abilities of leadership, the ability to shot fire, ice and lightening out of your hands, along with a powerful sonic boom ability. I will triple your bodily strength, your agility and your running speed," he listed. He was almost turning me into a Jedi from Star Wars.

"Done," was all I said. The Ellimist smiled and I felt a sudden surge of power flow through me. He was about to leave, so I asked, "Who's my opponent?"

"None other than your old nemesis, Esplin 9466, otherwise known as Visser One," he replied, and then disappeared. Time started up again, and Havens was looking at me.

"The General wants to see you, Tobias," he said. I had forgotten about our conversation.

"Good, because I have something that I need to tell him," I smiled and stood up. I followed Havens away from the perimeter, and inside the building. General Doubleday had hunkered down in the gymnasium, and it looked more like a command center, and less like the place that I hated so much. The general looked up from the tactical display on one of the computers, and smiled.

"Tobias, my boy. I need your input on the situation," he said

"Okay. Firstly, the Yeerks have routed again, and have fallen back. The Yeerk Pool has been destroyed by the Yeerk fleet that has just arrived," he seemed to sag at these words.

"The Yeerk Pool has been destroyed?" he said incredulously, "And a Yeerk fleet is in orbit?"

"Yes," I said grimly, "But I have some good news,"

"Good news?" he asked skeptically.

"Yes," I started, "But what I'm about to tell you is in the strictest of confidences, and only the most important officers, and my fellow squad members must be told,"

I waited several minutes before continuing, so that everyone except the General, my squad, and the senior officers remained.

"Okay, a quick question before I begin. General, do you believe in God?" I asked.

"As any good Christian would. Why?" he asked.

"Okay, that might make this slightly harder," I said, "Okay, there is no God, no Buddha, no Mohammed. No fair, all-seeing, all-knowing, ever-watching being. There is instead The Ellimist and Crayak. Two omnipotent beings, who reside in the space-time continuum, and play games that control the fate of the galaxy. The Ellimist is, as far as we know, the good guy of the two. He genuinely cares for the galaxy, and wants it to evolve on its own. Crayak, however, is evil incarnate. He causes whole species to turn on each other, so that one dominant race is left, completely under his control,"

General Doubleday was staring at me like I had gone crazy. He then thought this through, and then asked, "What has this got to do with anything?"

"You see, General, the Yeerks are backed by Crayak and us humans are backed by the Ellimist. And the Ellimist and Crayak have decided to play one more game for the control of Earth, and the right to do anything with its inhabitants. So if Crayak wins, we all are either dead or infested," I said, "That is exactly what the Ellimist is trying to avoid, and so, he has chosen me as his champion, and, for once, he's going to help us,"

"What kind of help," Griggs asked curiously.

"He gonna provide us with the schematics and resources to build our own ships, terra-forming equipment, so that we can colonize Mars and Venus, all the weapons to fight this war, and increase our desire to fight off the Yeerks," I listed, running over that part of the conversation in my head.

"If he's giving us all that, why don't we have it immediately?" Doubleday asked.

"I seriously doubt that he's allowed to interfere that much. I presume that he's gonna plant the seeds of the schematics in some military scientist's head, and our ships will be born that way. And, we gotta deal with the situation at hand first," I said, voicing my theories.

"And that is what I called you here to discuss," Doubleday said, "Do you have any ideas as to how we win down here, especially now that the Pool Ship has been destroyed and there is a Yeerk armada in orbit,"

"I don't know, but we have to take the town back somehow and…" I trailed off, as I felt a surge of power running through me, and I remembered what the Ellimist had given me, "I might have an idea,"

"Well, lets hear it then," Doubleday said. I remained silent. "Tobias, answer me!" he yelled, at that was what did it. I felt the anger course through me, and my veins burnt. My hand sprang open, and was ablaze with fire. Everyone yelled in surprise, and Griggs grabbed one of the jugs of water and threw the contents on to my hand, trying to douse the flames. I flicked my wrist and a jet of flames flew from my hand and made a fire on the floor, which Griggs quickly doused.

"Okay, so the Ellimist wasn't lying when he said he'd give me powers," I said happily.

"Tobias, son, are you gonna explain to me what the hell is going on!?" The General said, sounding shocked.

"Well, the Ellimist promised me powers, and I guess he wasn't lying," I said, still joyful, "Okay, stand back, there's something I want to try," They moved out of my way, and I faced the wall. I concentrated, and in a sudden rush, my veins turned blue and started to glow. I flicked my wrist and extended my fingers, and bolts of lightening flew from them.

"Now that is cool!" Taylor exclaimed, "So, Darth Sidious, how does this help us win this battle?"

Before I could answer, a soldier ran into the room yelling, "We're under attack, Sir!" The General walked over to the intercom microphone that was sitting on the desk and order, "Every man to the front, we are under attack. I repeat, we are under attack," He then shut off the microphone, and turned to me, "Come, you can showcase your powers on these fools attacking us,"

Nodded in agreement, and hurried outside to the perimeter. As I arrived, one of the soldiers, McCloseky I think, turned and said, "There's a lot more of the bastards this time, sir. I think it might be a last ditch assault,"

"Yeah, I think I might be," I replied, looking over the barricades.

"Tobias, I guess now would be a very good time then," said the General.

"Okay, I'll give it my best shot," I sighed, and leapt over the barricade.

"What the hell is he doing!" shouted McCloseky.

"Just watch, son," the General replied.

I stood there and focused. I needed something that would deliver a huge, final blow to them. The sonic boom, of course! I focused again, and my hands went a strange green colour. I clenched my fists and felt the power build up. I smiled, and then released the energy at the Yeerks. The air around me rippled like someone throwing a huge rock into a pond, and the concrete split. The air pushed forward and tore up the ground and the Yeerks, spending them flying backwards. The Big Fighters in the sky were thrown about, and then they crashed into the surrounding buildings. The more destroyed of the buildings crumbled from the immense pressure of the blast.

After the sonic boom finished, no Yeerk was left standing. The concrete in front of me was torn and missing. The buildings were crumbled, but there were no Yeerks. I turned, and faced the looks of disbelief and awe coming from the soldiers who had witnessed it. They respected and feared me, they held me in awe, and you know what, I felt good; it felt like they trusted me.

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A/N: There, I told you all it would be longer than the last one. Also major plot developments. Please, read and review. Its nice to see the comments.


	12. Chapter 12: The Sister

Disclaimer: Animorphs belongs to K.

Author's Note: -( )- Denotes thought-speech

* * *

**Chapter 12: The Sister**

My name is Tobias.

I used to be just Tobias Fangor, the boy nobody wanted, that boy that had no family, the dweeb, the bully magnet.

Now, three months after the Battle for the Pool Ship, I'm known by many names. Tobias the Animorph, Tobias the Bird-boy, Tobias the Ellimist's Champion, and the name from the media: Tobias Fangor, the Commander of the Human Resistance.

That's right, Commander of the Human Resistance. Note the word "Resistance", that means that the fight for Earth wasn't going too well. The promises the Ellimist made have only begun to come true, and all of the weapons and ships are in the development stage.

As for Earth, after the Yeerk Fifth Fleet arrived, the Second, Forth, Eighth, Twelfth, Sixteenth and Twenty-third Fleets joined them. The blockade of ships in orbit over Earth number over a thousand ships of varying kinds. The Yeerks control most of North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. Only the poles and Australia stand as the safe havens for humanity.

After the Battle for the Pool Ship, the remnants of ATF-1 and the local National Guard companies were formed into the Californian Defense Force, and were bolstered by the more veteran units of the U.S.M.C. That still didn't stop the Yeerks in taking most of California. We retreated to the mountains, and have hid there, launching raid after raid on the Yeerk facilities. We are slowly gaining the state back; and if we can get the state back, we can get the country back, and then the world. But, first things first; we have to stay alive, and not get found.

"Move out, stay low, and keep quiet," I ordered over the cross-com system. The cross-com system is the earliest stage of one of the Ellimist's designs, one that combines a Heads Up Display with a tactical overlay that allows orders to be seen on the HUD, and the orders made easier to give with the use of a neural interlace embedded in the back of the helmet. Well, that's what the scientists say anyway. And they're just like Ax, once they get started on the science behind all the new technology, it makes your brain hurt from confusion.

Tonight, we were raiding a facility that held a database with all the information about everyone in America, and it fell into Yeerk hands right at the start of the war. Now, we were going to take it back from them.

"You heard the Commander, move out," ordered Griggs, my right-hand man.

I had with me my platoon, which had been dubbed "Section 8" for the fact that we went on all the suicide missions. My platoon was one of the largest in the company, I had over fifty men. Five ten-man squads and a five-man commando team, a.k.a. The Commander's Squad. The men in my squad are the best in their chosen fields. Private Huon "DJ" Potter was my tech expert and an accomplished cracker. Private Morgan "Wunce" Grant, the heavy gunner, he was carrying the S8 R-KMG7A Ripsaw Machine Gun; the latest from the S8 armories. Sergeant Major "Chief" Laughlin, the most senior member of the team, with almost fifteen years of service with the United States Marine Corps. And, last but not least, Private "Rookie" McCloseky, one of the survivors of ATF-1. He has tried to have his nickname changed, but now it is known in the call-sign list at HQ, so he has to live with it.

We stalked forward, and we were soon at the perimeter of the compound that was our target.

"Aww… hell! That's our target?! It's a fucking fortress!" McCloseky exclaimed.

"Command wants it, so we gonna go get it," I said, "Now shut Rookie," Luckily, he shuts up when ever someone calls him "Rookie". "Chief, what do you see?" I asked him.

He shouldered his Vanguard Sniper Rifle and stared down the sights. He scanned the compound for several minutes, not blinking the entire time. Chief had been the only real competition in a staring contest. We once had one, it went for over an hour, but he blinked in the end; I've had three years experience of almost none-stop staring, so there was no real chance of him winning.

"There's only a skeleton guard on the outside, I count at the most thirty-five. Plus four in each of the guard towers, so… about seventy in total, on the outside at the least. There are several barracks, so there could be at least two hundred topside," he reported.

"Okay, what species are the guards?" I asked,

"The soldiers in the towers are human controllers, the ones on patrol are those nasty sons of bitches, the Hork-Bajeerk," he replied.

The Hork-Bajeerk, Crayak's contributions to the Yeerk cause. A species born and bred by Crayak to be the ultimately loyal host, a Hork-Bajir with a Yeerk born into its brain. They were utterly loyal, and, worst of all, they could be bred by the thousands.

"Well, no-one said it was going to be easy, but, we have to do it," I said to Chief. I switched on the cross-com, and all chatter ceased. "Right, we are facing a heavily guarded compound, with at least two hundred soldiers top side, with an unknown amount underground, in the facility itself," I informed everyone, "So, I want Alpha and Bravo squads to back up Commando Squad, we're taking the main gate. Charlie and Delta squads are to hit the flanks, and cut their way through the fences. Remember to take out the guards in the towers first. Echo squad, I want you to head round the far side, and neutralize those barracks. Everyone clear on their objectives?" I ordered. I received confirmation from all squads. "Good, now lets move out,"

I moved with my squad, with Alpha and Bravo squads flanking us, down to the front gate. "Charlie, Delta, Echo, report in," I said quietly over the cross-com.

"Charlie here, we're in position, awaiting our order,"

"Delta here, give the word Commander,"

"Echo is in position, ready to strike,"

"C and D, strike now, nice and quiet," I ordered. "Echo, take out your tower, nice and quiet and cut through the fence,"

"Affirmative,"

"Roger that,"

"Wilco, Echo out,"

"Teda here, tower five is out, do we move against six?" Sergeant Teys, the sergeant in command of Charlie squad, asked.

"Confer with Echo, Teda, and engage if necessary," I ordered.

"This is Big Daddy, target neutralized, what now? Over," Delta squad's sergeant asked.

"Big Daddy, engage and neutralize tower one and punch through the gap between the two towers, over," I ordered.

"Roger that, Commander,"

We stood in the shadows and waited for the squads to report that they we're in.

"Echo in position, neutralizing the barracks now,"

"Charlie is through the fence and ready to go, sir,"

"Delta has completed all objectives,"

"Right, I think that's enough waiting," I said, shouldering my Scimitar Assault Rifle, "Lets bag us some kills. Alpha, Bravo, Commando, move to the gates and engage, weapons free and silent,"

We ran forward silently, and I took aim at the left-hand side tower, and shot several short bursts, killing all four in the tower. Griggs and Chief dealt with the other tower.

"Heavy, get that charge on the gate, now!" I ordered.

He ran forward and placed a small breaching charge on the gate.

"3…2…1… fire in the hole,"

BANG!

The charge went off quietly, and we moved through to the next the gate, and broke that one as well. We were then inside the complex, and no one knew.

"Spread out by fire team, and find the main entrance," I ordered over the cross-com.

I heard the sounds of Dracon beams ringing out through the silence of the night, only to silenced by the expertly placed shots for a member of Section 8. I was proud of my platoon, they were like my family and my friends, and they were really good at what they did.

"_Grafash, intruders, intruders! Shoot to kill!"_ Damn it! They raised the alarm.

"No point in being subtle anymore, they know we're here. Echo, blow those barracks," I shouted.

KAAA-BOOOMMM KAAA-BOOOMMMM KAAA-BOOOMMMM

The explosions shattered the silence like glass, and the night erupted into flames. The sounds of gunfire were heard easily now. I emptied the rest of my clip into an incoming patrol of Hork-Bajeerks, and cut them down. I reloaded and moved to the rest of my squad.

"Sir," said Wunce, "We found the way in," he pointed to the building to his left. I activated the marker-light on the front of my rifle and painted the target building as the entrance. I hit the broadcast button on the cross-com and shared the information with the rest of the platoon.

"The target building has been found. Alpha and Commando squads will head underground and seize the facility, whilst the rest of you will stay top-side and secure the area," I ordered, and then switched off the cross-com. My squad and I moved carefully towards the building, and swept the area for any Yeerks.

"Clear," Wunce said, after he swept the area with his thermal vision.

"Okay, move to the building!" I ordered. We ran across the open area that surrounded the entrance, and pressed ourselves up against the wall around the door.

"Okay, we wait here for Griggs and his squad, and then we breach the door. From there, we check ever room on every floor, and proceed down to our target on Floor 12," I said, simultaneously to my squad and Griggs' squad, outlining our objective.

"Okay, Heavy, blow the door," I said to Griggs' demolitions expert as they arrived. He moved forward and placed his breaching charge on the thick, metal door.

"Hmmm… Sir, the charge might not open the door," he said worriedly.

"Don't worry private, if I must, I'll knock the door down," I reassured him, unhooking my S8 MPRL-1 Trident Missile Launcher from my back. He smiled excitedly when he saw it, as he always does when he sees something large and incredibly explosive.

"Why don't we just use that instead?" he asked.

"Because, command doesn't know that I stole one of their experimental, untested, missile launchers. And if I get it dirty, they're gonna be pissed," I said with a laugh.

"That, and Command wanted this place handed to them in perfect condition, silver platter and everything," Griggs piped in.

"Shut up, and wire the door," I said tolerably.

He moved to the door and lined the hinges and lock with C4 explosives, and moved back to a safe distance.

"3… 2… 1… Fire in the hole!" he yelled.

Click. BOOOMMM

We sat and waited for the bang of the door hitting the ground, but it never came. I poked my head out of cover and looked at the door, "The bastard door's still standing!" I yelled.

"Well, Commander, looks like you have to use the Trident after all," Griggs said.

"Yep," I said, shouldering the missile launcher, "I suggest the everyone stands back,"

They all moved to either side of me, and I pointed the missile launcher at the door. I locked on to the door, and fired. I felt a massive jolt of recoil as the missile left its tube, and flew towards the door. There was a massive explosion, and it took several minutes for the smoke to clear.

When the smoke had finally cleared, I realized why Command hadn't commissioned the Trident for battlefield use yet. Not only was the door gone, so was the wall surrounding it, along with most of the part of the building above ground.

"Oh…" was all I could say. Heavy, however, was far more exuberant.

"As a great men once said, I gotta get me one of these!" he shouted.

"Uh… Tobias, the objective was to blow the door down, not blow the god damned building up!" Griggs shouted.

"Oh shut up," I said irritably, "I made the entrance we needed, didn't I? Now, lets get going," They all stopped talking and started following me across the courtyard, and into the now destroyed first floor of the building. I honestly didn't think they would make a missile launcher that powerful, I mean, what the hell is it packing? Must be the new explosive-tipped two-ten millimeter rounds.

We moved through the building, until we found the stairwell.

"Right, move carefully, and expect heavy resistance. Keep your Friend-or-Foe ID on at all times, I don't want any accidents this time," I ordered, "Griggs, I want your squad to split into two fire teams, and sweep each floor, I'll take Commando squad, and carve a path straight to the objective,"

"Aye, Sir," Griggs replied

"Commando, lets go," I said.

We left the others, and moved quietly down the stairwell. Unfortunately, it only went down three floors, meaning that we had to fight our way down eight floors to get to the database hub. We had to fight our way through eight floors of tense, alert Yeerk soldiers, along with any security features that they might have added since they took the facility. I looked at the wall in front of us, and then turn to DJ, "DJ, is there anything you can do about the cameras?"

"Well, if the map if got is still up to date, then I could hack into them from the security post on this floor," he said, consulting his PDA.

"Where is it?" I asked.

"I'm uploading the directions to our HUD's now," he said, distractedly.

A marker appeared on the mini-map on my HUD. "Right, lets get a move on then," I said.

I opened the door to floor four, and placed the snake cam through the gap. I used it to check the corridor, and found it surprisingly empty.

"All clear, lets go," I said, pushing my suspicions aside. We moved down the corridor towards security.

"Kinda quiet, isn't it?" McCloseky said.

"Yep," I replied, "Keep your eyes peeled for anything,"

"Sir, the first three floors are empty, I mean, not a soul in any of them," Griggs voice crackled over the radio; he sounded sort of spooked.

"All quiet on the forth floor," I replied, "It might get busier after we switch off the cameras, so tell your men to keep on their toes. I don't want any ambushes,"

By that time, we had reached security, and hadn't seen a single controller in the entity of the floor.

"DJ, hook up to the console, and see if you can find us some Yeerks," I ordered.

I used the spare time to contact the surface. "Bravo, report," I said over the radio.

"We've taken care of most of the Yeerks topside. We got them boxed in the eastern corner of the compound, and they're putting up a bit of resistance," came the voice of Sergeant Tara Weston, a.k.a. Ratchet.

"Okay, Ratchet, play it safe up there, and don't let anyone take any unnecessary risks, they will crumble," I replied, "When your done up here, we might need a bit of assistance down here, but no rush, it's really quiet. As in, haven't seen any Yeerks on the top four floors, quiet,"

"Damn, unlucky. I've racked up almost thirty kills myself," she replied.

"Yeah, well, don't rub it in. Just finish the Yeerks up there," I ordered.

"Will do. Ratchet out," she said, going quiet.

I turned back to my squad, "DJ, did you find anything?" I asked.

"I've bypassed the security, and hacked the camera feed. We have a problem," he said. I really did not like the sound of that.

"What kind of problem?" I asked, fearing the answer.

"All the Yeerks in the facility are holed up in the database control room, and there is a shit load of them," he replied.

"Clever bastards. They figured out that we're after the database, and they know that we won't do anything to damage the storage units," I mused, "How many are there?" I asked.

"Hmm… performing scan… hold on one moment… there are eighty-three," he said, tapping furiously at the computer.

"Eighty-three? No wonder it's empty up here. The bastards are all down in the control room," I said. At that moment, Griggs and his squad rounded the corner.

"Griggs! Don't bother about be subtle, they know were here. They're all in the control room," I shouted.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" he shouted back.

"Well, let's do it," I said.

We ran down the remaining eight floors, and found ourselves at the entrance to floor twelve.

"Okay, keep your eyes peeled, and guns ready," I said as we approached the door to the control room, "Remember, flash bangs only, no frag grenades, no C4, nothing explosive. Command wants the contents of that room secure and in one piece," ordered. They all nodded. They were all also very nervous, but this is the kind of thing that gives Section 8 its name.

"Okay, blow the door," I ordered. Once again, Heavy moved up to the door and set a charge.

"Fire in the hole!" he shouted and then blew the door off its hinges.

"Suppressing fire!" I shouted and let opened fire on the Yeerks inside, "Move, get inside!"

We threw flash bangs and smoke grenades through the door and ran in, taking cover behind anything we could find. Wunce set his Machine Gun up on top of an overturned filing cabinet, and opened up on the Yeerks, cutting down any caught out in the open.

I aimed down the sights and fired a burst into the head of the nearest Hork-Bajeerk, the back blowing out and covering his comrades with it's blood and brains. I fired around the corner and hit three Hork-Bajeerks with the fire, killing all of them.

The room was full of the sounds of gunfire and screaming, the kind of stuff that gives anyone nightmares.

"We can't hold out much longer!" Griggs shouted, "I've already lost half my squad!"

"We can't fall back, we've got to hold out until the other squads get here!" I shouted back.

"AAAHHHH!" someone next to me screamed. It was McCloseky, he'd been hit.

"Chief!" I shouted, "Look after Rookie!"

"On it," he said, and moved next to McCloseky, "You're gonna be alright kid, just stay with me,"

Suddenly, the wall behind us blew inwards, and through the smoke I saw the other squads taking cover behind the destroyed wall.

After the arrival of the rest of the platoon, the Yeerks were all killed in a matter of minutes. We moved into the control room, and I started to give out orders. "Alright. Firstly, I want to know how many casualties we sustained. Then, I want the wounded move to the hospital, three floors up. Bravo will guard the hospital. Alpha will stay here. Charlie, Delta and Echo will take up positions topside and wait for the convoy from command to arrive,"

"Aye sir,"

"Roger that,"

"Will do,"

"Wilco, Delta moving out,"

"Affirmative," were the responses that I got from the squad leaders. After everyone had moved out, I turned to DJ. "Lets just have a little look through our personal records, shall we?"

"Do you really have to ask?" he replied.

"Well, I thought that I better," I said back.

"Hmm, okay," he said, turning and sitting down in front of one of the working computers, "Let's start with you, shall we?"

"Okay, although I'm pretty sure as to what I'll find," I replied.

He tapped away at the keyboard, and then looked up, "Ah, here we are," he said.

I leaned over his shoulder, and viewed my record. It didn't say very much, dead mother, dead father, living with aunt and uncle; the usual bullshit.

"Hang on a second," I said, looking at the "Living Relatives" section. I had a twin sister called Serina. When did that happen?

"Hey, Sir? How come you've never mentioned her?" he asked, "Oh, right, you probably didn't know… oh, damn,"

"What?" I asked urgently.

"I'm so sorry, Sir. She's a controller," he said, remorsefully.

"Fuck!"

* * *

A/N: And thus finishes my longest chapter in the story so far, over three thousand words. As always, read and review.


	13. Chapter 13: Three Years Later

Disclaimer: Animorphs belong to K., yadda, yadda, yadda. (a.k.a the usual bullshit)

Author's Note: -( )- denotes thought speech (and will remain so until I figure out how to do otherwise.)

* * *

Chapter 13: Three Years Later

My name is Rachel, and it has been three very long years. Three long years since we fled Earth on board an Andalite Dome Ship. Three years since we left Earth, and everyone on it, to the mercy of the Yeerks. Of course, we have heard reports from the scouts that humanity has been putting up a resistance, and, apparently, the resistance is being led by a god-general. Go figure.

Cassie, Jake, Marco and myself have been doing the Andalite equivalent of a tour of duty. In other words, we've been working with the Andalites, on Andalite ships, fighting the Andalite's enemies. It hasn't been that bad, I suppose. At least we've been able to stay with Ax, who was promoted to the rank of War-Prince when we arrived on the Andalite home world. And, of course, we have to answer to any and all of the summons of Electorate. More precisely, the summons of Councilor Lirem. Like we have to now.

"So, remind me exactly what we are doing here again?" Marco asked for, what seemed like, the millionth time.

-(As we all have told you several times Marco, Councilor Lirem wants to see us)- Ax replied, getting slightly annoyed.

We were sitting in the middle of a small shuttle, en route from the space docks to the location that was known only to the pilots, who had been instructed not to talk to us. Ominous much? Then again, there is still a huge amount of ill feelings towards us from most of the Andalite military, because we were the first 'aliens' in the Andalite military, and many of the veterans believed that this was a really bad sign. And because of it, we were kept on the same ship as Ax, and the ship was crewed by the least xenophobic Andalites they could find. This included a large amount of females, who warmed to us quickly, because they receive a lot of shit from the older soldiers for being females. And I thought some of the men on Earth were chauvinists.

"Well, that makes me feel so much better," Marco replied sarcastically, "I mean, there is nothing what-so-ever suspicious about this whole shindig, what with the secrecy and the silent-"

"Shut up, Marco!" I shouted at him.

"Someone's a bit grouchy today," he replied

"Didn't I just tell you to shut up?" I replied, getting angry

"I take it you like all this secrecy, and all the alienation, and all-"

"I can't believe you will not shut up!" I shouted.

"Oh, I get it," he said snidely, "You're missing bird-boy, aren't you? Awww, ain't that sweet! Despite the fact that he's still on Earth, eighty light-years away, and most likely dead, you still want him!" he pulled a face and started laughing. He stopped abruptly when he saw the look on my face. He knew he had gone too far. But, he still had something left to say after this, as per usual. "You know, he is mostly likely dead, so I've been thinking-"

"That's a first," I said bitterly

"Funny, Xena, really funny," he said before continuing, "As I was saying, I've been thinking that you should throw it in with bird-boy and hook up with me. I am, after all, the only available human male in this section of the galaxy,"

"Marco, even if you were the _last_ human male in this section of the galaxy, I still wouldn't go out with you," I snapped. That shut him up. He sat there silently with a stony look on his face. And to tell the truth, I was missing Tobias badly. I knew he was on Earth, but I knew he was alright. I didn't actually know that he was alive, but I had one of those 'feelings', you know the kind of thing I'm talking about, where you have feeling that someone in danger is alright, and they usually are. Anyway, this is how it has been for the last three years; me missing Tobias like crazy, and Marco constantly asking me out. Yeah, kind of annoying.

The shuttle started to slow down, and we felt the distant vibrations of the landing gear lowering, and the air being pushed down and hitting the underside of the shuttle as it came back up again.

-(We have arrived. Please leave the shuttle via the back door)- came a voice from the front area of the shuttle. They were the first words we'd heard from the pilots and, ironically, they were the last.

"It's nice to be able to stretch my legs at last," Jake said, whilst getting up and walking out the opened hatch. Cassie and Marco followed quickly, with Ax and myself bringing up the rear. Cassie soon dropped back in step with me, and Ax moved up to talk to Jake and Marco.

"I know that look on your face, Rachel. Your missing Tobias, aren't you?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah," I said, whilst sighing.

"Rachel, it's been three years. It really is time to move on,"

"I don't think I can, Cassie. I loved him," I replied sadly

"Rachel, I know that is a very good reason to not want to give up on him, but Earth has been under Yeerk control for three years, and even Tobias can't survive for that long with that many Yeerks roaming around," she said.

"You don't know Tobias, he's probably the one leading the resistance," I said defiantly, "Why do I get the feeling that Jake asked you to do this?" Cassie blushed, and I knew in an instant that Jake had asked her to tell me to get over Tobias.

"Hey girls, we're there," Jake called back, and we hurried to catch up with them. When we got to them, I realized that we were at the Electorate building. I suddenly got the feeling that we were here for serious business. We made our way through the Electorate building, and found ourselves being led to Councilor Lirem's office. This had to be serious. We were shown in, and the guard left, leaving just the six of us with Lirem.

-(I apologize for the abrupt nature of this meeting, but we have recently acquired some intelligence concerning your home planet)- Lirem began.

"Councilor Lirem, is it good news, or bad news?" Jake asked.

-(I am not entirely sure. You see, the intelligence report shows that Earth is still under Yeerk control, but not as completely under control as we had previously thought)- Lirem informed us. I was really surprised by the news; Earth was finally putting up a fierce fight.

-(Councilor Lirem, I would say that this is very good news)- Ax replied

-(Well, I suppose that it would appear to be good news, Prince Aximili. Which is why I am sending all of you to investigate on these findings, and report on the validity of these claims)- he replied.

"So, that's what all the secrecy was about? Your sending us on a lone mission to check on Earth?" Marco asked.

-(In short, yes)- Lirem answered, before starting to explain the situation.

"So, what are the claims that we have to validate?" asked Cassie.

-(Well, as you all know, six months ago I sent out a scouting party to check on the Earth System. Well, the scouts have recently returned to the planet, and have made some startling claims)- Lirem explained.

"And what are the claims?" I said, repeating Cassie's question.

-(Upon entering the system, the scouts performed the usual scans: the locations of ships, hack-able radio channels, orbital observation posts, and so on)- Lirem explained, -(When they completed those scans, the scans indicated that there was not a single ship in the outer areas of the system; the section of the system between the planets you call Jupiter and Pluto)-

"That… that's really strange," Jake managed to say. He looked as shocked as I felt.

-(What's stranger is that, as they proceeded in-system, they discovered twelve burnt-out husks of that were identified as Yeerk _Instigator_ Class Capital Ships, and a larger ship of unknown origin or classification.)- Lirem paused to take a look at the surprised expressions on our faces. _Instigator_ Class Capital Ships were the toughest cruisers the Yeerks had in their fleets, and it took the combined firepower of three _Freedom_ Class Dome Ships to take one down when the cruiser has its shields down. When the shields were up, the best option is to run as fast as possible. –(Furthermore, the scouts report that the damage to the Yeerk cruisers had been done by some kind of ballistics-based projectile, which rules out all races that we know of with space-flight capacity, as they all use the more efficient particle-based weaponry.)-

"So what you're saying, Councilor Lirem, is that either Earth has been in contact with an unknown third-party race, that still uses metal-based rounds on their cruisers, or Earth has finally discovered how to make proper cruisers?" asked Marco, who had been analyzing everything that had been said.

-(Precisely Marco, precisely. Which is why I am sending you to validate these claims,)- Lirem said, -(Now, I know I am sending you straight into the heart of enemy territory, where you will face not only Yeerks, but also a potential 'third-party', as you put it Marco, who appear to be in the possession of incredibly powerful cruisers. On the other hand, you could find that your homeworld is now a highly civilized race and an ally of great potential and power. This is the exact reason as to why I'm sending the six of you, plus your crew.)- _So, he had finally revealed his intentions. He wanted us to check on Earth and see if the Human raced had advanced enough to become a potential ally. And he was sending us as negotiations would probably be easier if they were Human to Human, as opposed to Andalite to Human. Clever,_ I thought. I smiled the slightest bit at this thought, because it meant we were finally going home. -(The main reason for this mission being kept a secret is that, as you all well know, many members of the Andalite military oppose that fact that you humans are part of the military, and news that we are risking resources on the off-chance that Earth might be friendly would make the more strongly opposed soldiers mutinous)-

"Fair enough," Cassie replied, "You don't want mutiny in the ranks, so you're keeping this secret?"

-(Exactly, Cassie)- Lirem replied. All of a sudden I had a bad feeling about this mission.

"Um, sorry to piss on this parade, but one cruiser to check on a possibly hostile planet? I don't think so, I'm not risking it, not even for Earth," Marco said, in his usual cowardly way.

-(Do not fear, Marco. That has already been taken into account, and that is why I am promoting all of you to the rank of Captain-Prince, and you will all be allocated cruisers, and your own selection of crew)- There was a long silence following what Lirem had said. We were going to be Captains of our own ships. I could hardly believe it. –(You will set out in one week, so please make all the necessary arrangements with crew and ship names, and so on. Goodbye and good luck)- Lirem finished, and we left, still in shock from our promotions and the news about Earth.

After a very long week of preparations, I finally stood on the bridge of my very own _Freedom_ Class Dome Ship, which I had named _Red Feathers_, in honour of Tobias. My crew was made up of females and non-prejudiced males and trust me they weren't easy to find. That meant that the entirety of my crew were females and young, inexperienced males. God, this mission isn't looking good. None of them are warriors; all of them are scientists or fledging diplomats, although the latter would probably come in handy when it comes time to negotiate.

Because Marco and I got our crew rosters done quickly, we'd had time to change the names of our ships. Jake and Cassie had had a harder time finding a decent crew who had some experience, and weren't completely biased against us. Therefore, they had to keep their ships' original names. Jake's ship had already been named appropriately anyway, as it was called the "_Leader's Burden"_, and Jake considered everything that had happened to Earth his fault alone, and he refused to hear anything otherwise. Cassie had the luck of getting a _Freedom_ Class Dome Ship that had been converted into a medical cruiser, and had the name "_Healer's Touch_". An appropriate name, because Cassie had played the role of the _Intrepid_'s Medical Officer during our Tour of Duty. Marco had given a somewhat strange name to his ship, naming it "_Gorilla's Fist_", I think it has something to do with his battle morph, but I haven't had the time to ask him.

-(We are ready to launch, Captain)- reported Aeisha, my main pilot. I turned around to face her.

"Good. We'll launch when War-Prince Aximili gives the go-ahead," I responded. I was anxious. I really wanted to go home so badly, to get away from the Andalites and their xenophobic tendencies, to actually hear someone's voice that isn't Jake's, Cassie's or Marco's, to see my parents again, to go shopping and buy some decent clothes. And yet, who knew how long it would take to get there? With the unreliability of Z-Space, it could take a matter of days, or years. I seriously hope that the former is the case, because I seriously doubt I could stand staring at the blank nothingness that is Z-Space.

The viewscreen brightened, and Ax's face appeared. -(This is War-Prince Aximili, all ships launch)- came the 'voice' through the speakers. Aeisha looked at me, and I nodded. The ship rumbled as it lifted off the ground and entered the atmosphere.

-(All systems are up and running at full power, Captain)- Tengwar, my systems officer, reported.

-(Exiting the atmosphere and joining the rest of the task force, Captain)- Aeisha reported.

"Prepare the Z-Space engines and plot a course through the Z-Space lanes to the Earth System," I said, turning to face her. I really wasn't good at handing out orders; this was Jake and Ax's job.

-(Course set, co-ordinates locked in. Awaiting your order to make the jump, Captain)- came Aeisha's response, several minutes later.

"Hold position, and await the order from War-Prince Aximili," I said back. I was really nervous, and I was afraid that it would show if I talked too much, so I kept my orders short and simple.

-(Yes Captain)-

We waited for several minutes as all the other ships to make all the necessary preparations. Finally Ax's order came, and we accelerated out of the system and into the blank nothingness that was Z-Space.

We had been in Z-Space for three months now, and the lanes that we had been traveling through had behaved well, and we were almost to Earth. I was lying in my darkened quarters, thinking about the journey and everything that had happened, and might happen. I started thinking back over the war we'd been fighting the last six years. _Six years_, I though, _we've been fighting a war for six years, and I'm not even twenty_. With that thought, I realized that I'd never had never really been a teenager. Yes, I was still nineteen, and therefore a teenager, but I'd never had the opportunity to live like an ordinary teenager. You know, you to school, hang out with friends, shopping. That kind of thing.

-(Captain to the Bridge, we have arrived in the Earth system)- came Aeisha's 'voice' over the intercom, interrupting my train of thought. I pressed the talk button on the intercom, and said, "I'll be right up," With that, I got out of bed, pulled on my jumpsuit, and walked out of the room.

I walked onto the bridge several minutes later just in time to watch the transition from the blank white of Z-Space to the speckled black of regular space. The nearest Andalite to the door noticed my arrival, and barked out -(Captain on the bridge)- and all the officers stood at attention.

"As you were," I said simply, and they all went back to their tasks. I walked over to my chair in the center of the room, and sat down. It was pretty comfortable, considering the fact that Andalites don't sit down, and thus have no need for chairs. I picked up my personal communicator, and dialed Jake.

"Jake here," said Jake over the communicator.

"Hey cousin," I said, "Ready to finally head home?"

"Of course," he replied, "It's been a _long_ three years. I can't wait to see what the place is like and, more importantly, see my family. Or what's left of it, anyway," he added the last bit with more than a hint of sadness and regret.

"Jake, what happened to Tom couldn't have been avoided," I said, trying to comfort him. This was usually Cassie's job. "He was going to betray us, we knew that from the start. He tried to kill all of us,"

"Yeah, I guess your right," he replied, sighing, before his mood picked up again, "So, are you going to see your family first? Or Tobias?" he questioned teasingly.

"If possible both, but it depends on who finds us first," I said, trying to make it sound like I didn't notice the teasing. Jake just laughed. I was about to continue, when the warning alarms started to sound. "Got to go, see ya,"

-(We have incoming Yeerk ships)- said my Tactical Officer.

"What are we looking at?" I asked. Suddenly the holographic display table lit up, and showed a Yeerk fleet, numbering at least thirty.

-(The enemy fleet consists of two pool ships, twenty _Nova_ Class Empire Ships and eighteen _Despoiler_ Class Empire Ships, with and escort of at least two hundred and fifty Mark 12 Bug Fighters and twenty-five Blade Ships)- he replied. I gaped at the staggering numbers. _That must be either a really big scouting party or a really small fleet_, I thought, _or, perhaps, they're the remnants of something bigger, and are running from something? Who knows?_

"That means we are outnumbered four-to-one just in cruisers, correct?" I asked

-(I am afraid that is correct)- The First Officer answered

"Do we have any fighters in the task force?" I asked, fearing the answer.

-(No)- was the reply I got.

"Damn it!" I swore out loud, "Get in contact with the rest of the task force, we need to figure out a outta this mess,"

-(Of course, I am doing it now)- replied the Communications Officer.

-(Wait! We have even more contacts, approaching fast from behind the Yeerks. I cannot, however, determine the origin of these new ships)- said the Andalite that was manning the scanners.

"Oh this can't be good," I said.

* * *

A/N: After almost eight months, I've finally gotten around to updating this story. I apologize to all of you who were actually waiting for this update, and I seriously doubt it's up to scratch (you can't exactly blame me, I haven't written anything for seven months, besides assignments), but here it is. The next chapter is in the works, and should be up in the next week.


	14. Chapter 14: Unknown Allies

Disclaimer: Animorphs belongs to K., etc., etc.

Author's Note: -( )- denotes thought speech. _Italics_ denotes radio.

* * *

My name is Jake. And we are in some serious trouble right now.

The viewscreen was divided up into four sections, one for each of the other ships.

"Okay, the Yeerk fleet is five minutes away, and will be in range soon. They out-number us eight-to-one in cruisers alone, not to mention the hundreds of Bug Fighters and the two dozen Blade Ships that are escorting the cruisers," I said, laying out the facts, "Any suggestions?" I asked.

"We could always try surrendering," Marco suggested as a joke.

"No Marco. As always, surrender isn't an option," I replied wearily.

-(Prince Jake, may I suggest that we attempt to contact the ships that are approaching from behind the Yeerk fleet? They may just prove to be friendly)- Ax suggested.

"Well, we could. I suppose that there's only one way to find out if they're friendly or not," I said. I turned to face my communications officer and was about to request that he attempt to establish contact when his voice filled my head, -(Captain Jake, we are being hailed!)-

"Who by?" I asked. Yeerks have a tendency to shoot first and ask questions later. The same went for the Andalites.

-(I am not entirely sure, sir, but the origin of the signal is coming from behind the Yeerk fleet, so I would suggest that perhaps it is the unknown contacts)- he surmised.

"Okay, put it up on the screen," I ordered.

-(I cannot, sir, it is an audio transmission)- he replied. _What the hell?_ I thought, _Who uses audio transmissions?_

"Okay then, play it through the speakers," I said, slightly confused.

-(Playing now)- he said. He made several commands via thought-speech and white noise blasted out of the speakers at a deafening level. Everyone on the bridge flinched as the noise pierced their eardrums.

"For the love of god, turn it down!" I shouted at my communications officer over the deafening noise.

-(Of course, sir)- he replied, and the noise stopped. It was replaced by a scratching noise, and then a noise of which the pitch alternated with what sounded like someone saying "wah-wah" over and over followed by a what sounded like someone playing a rock song. I looked at the screen and saw Marco bobbing his head in time with the music and had a slight smile on his face.

"_I stand up next to a mountain, and I chop it down with edge of my hand,"_ came a voice over the speakers.

-(Sir, I am somewhat confused, what is this?)- asked my First Officer.

I didn't reply. Instead, I looked over at Marco again with a questioning look on my face. He rolled his eyes and said "One word, Hendrix," and then it clicked. They were playing 'Voodoo Child' by Jimi Hendrix. Whoever _they_ were.

"Well, I think it's safe to say that the unknown contacts are human," I said, smiling.

"Yeah, but who knows if they'll be friendly to us," Rachel said, and I privately agreed.

"_Hey DJ, could ya play something with a little more… I dunno… oomph?_" a gruff voice blared out of the speakers.

"_Hang on,_" came a voice I guess that must belong to 'DJ', "_How about some GNR, eh?_"

"_Sweet!_" said a younger, more excited voice, "_I'd say either 'Welcome to the Jungle', 'Mr. Brownstone' or 'Paradise City',_"

"_I was thinkin' more of 'Sweet Child O' Mine'_" came a fourth voice.

"_Sorry boss, but I kinda prefer 'Welcome to the Jungle' when I'm blasting Yeerks outta the sky,_" Said DJ, the second voice.

"_Well then, put the song on, and lets start knocking some Yeerk bastards out of the sky,_" said the fourth voice with a hint of a laugh. "_You might wanna make a playlist, because you aren't gonna have time to change tracks when we start shooting,_"

"_I guess, but seeing as I can't be bothered making a list, I guess I'll just hit the shuffle button,_" replied 'DJ' with a laugh. We all just stood there. The pilots weren't just humans, they were free humans. I looked at the others and saw that they all had impatient looks on their faces. I knew what that meant. It was time for me to act like the leader.

"Ax, would you prefer to talk to the pilots?" I asked him, as he was in charge of the task force.

-(No, Prince Jake. These are your people, and I believe that they might respond better if a human, as opposed to an Andalite, were to contact them)- he responded quickly. Great, he had just put all the responsibility onto my shoulders. Again. I turned to my Communications Officer, and asked him to establish an audio link with the humans.

"Hello, can anyone hear me?" I said.

"_Who is this? Identify yourself!_" came a new voice.

"This is Captain Jake Berenson of the Dome Ship _Leader's Burden_," I said cautiously.

"_Look son, I don't know what you're trying to pull here, but the is no ship in the UNSF or in the Yeerk fleet with that name, nor is there a captain with that name on any United Nations Armed Forces register, or on any civilian census. So, please identify yourself properly before my team and_ _I blow you to kingdom come!_"

-(These humans are a very hostile group)- said one of my junior officers, -(Perhaps we should break contact with them, and attempt with another group?)-

"No, they're just being defensive. I get the feeling that they've been duped by the Yeerks with a similar trick in the past," Marco replied.

"_Damn right! They killed over two hundred thousand civilians the last time we let that happen! So do you honestly think we're gonna trust someone with a fake name and a fake ship ID?_" came the same voice. What stunned me, though, was the fact that he said that two hundred thousand people were killed when the let a Yeerk ship into their security.

"_Ghost, with all due respect, SHUT THE FUCK UP before I court martial your ass back to basic!_" yelled another voice, clearly belonging to someone of authority.

"_Sorry sir, I'm just doing my job,_" replied 'Ghost'.

"_Listen sergeant, we have a very good chance here to create an alliance, so just keep your mouth shut,_"

"_Yes sir, sorry sir,_"

"_Now then, Captain Berenson, what can I do for you?_" asked the second voice

I was slightly taken aback at his politeness after what we had just heard. "Um… well I guess assistance would be helpful at this precise moment. We have a Yeerk fleet headed our way, and we only have five ships and no fighters," I said

"_Dear god, Captain, you entered some of the most dangerous space in the Milky Way with only five ships and no defensive fighters? Shit, you guys are in trouble. Hang on, I'm receiving a ping… yes! Got your position… oh… your in direct line with the remnants of a Yeerk incursion fleet, that got hammered trying to drop troops off on Mars. Hang on, we can be in your sector in E.T.A forty-five seconds once we've got our co-ordinates locked in,_" said their leader.

"I can honestly say I was expecting to have to plead for help," I said, shocked by his readiness to help.

"_Captain,_" he replied, more serious this time, "_We have suffered greatly, and lost millions of innocent lives in the last three and a half years, we aren't gonna turn down a chance for help,_"

"Oh, okay," I said. Lost millions of lives? That can't be good.

"_We're coming up on your position any second now, look to your starboard side,_" he replied. I looked out the starboard side of the bridge, and saw a lot of objects rapidly appear out of nowhere, and zoom past the bridge. The fighters themselves were huge. They had to be at least a hundred feet long and maybe half-again as wide, and in a similar shape as a stealth bomber.

"Woah…" was all Marco has to say.

I turned to my T.O. and asked him to run an analysis of the fighters. Looking up from his screen he turned back to me.

-(The human craft is roughly thirty metres long, and forty-five metres wide, and six metres in depth. From my analysis, the ship has an armament of two forward-mounted rotating guns, two rotating guns attached to the undercarriage that seem to be able to swivel in a full three-hundred and sixty degree range. The fighter also appears to have some rockets, but they do seem somewhat superfluous as we stopped using rockets decades ago)- A hit of the standard Andalite snobbery was more than evident.

The humans flew straight at the Yeerk ships, and the Bug Fighters peeled off to meet the new threats. The cruisers, however, kept coming straight for us.

"_Commander to all units, break off by squadrons and engage Buggers and Blade Ships only, leave the biggun's for Havoc Squadron. Everyone, attack pattern Delta,_" said the human commander, who was using the codename "Commander".

"_Rules of Engagement?_" asked one of the pilots.

"_Search and Destroy, Delta One, Crew Expendable,_"

"_Okay, lets get to it Marines, the Corp ain't payin' us by the hour!_" shouted the same pilot, who was called "Delta One".

"_I got a Bug Fighter in my sights, five by five,_" said a female voice.

"_Then by all means, take the first kill of the fight,_" said the Commander.

"_Thanks sir!_" replied the pilot, "_She shoots… she scores!_"

"_Story of your life, eh Ratchet?_" joked another pilot.

"_Screw you, Gaz!_"

"_Any time, any place, baby,_"

"_Dream on. Gaz! Your left!_"

"_I see him… and I get second kill!_"The pilots kept up a steady stream of banter as they flew around the Yeerk ships, destroying Bug Fighters left, right and center.

-(Those human ships do not stand a chance against that Blade Ship)- said my T.O. as three fighters flew in a triangle formation towards the closest Blade Ship. They simultaneously fired two missiles each and broke off, the left ship going left, the right-hand ship going right, and the middle ship pulling up into a steep climb and all of them spun wing-over-wing. They were clearly showing off. Their missiles hit home on the Blade Ship, on the shaft just in front of the engines. The Blade Ship burst into flames as the escaping oxygen met the vacuum of space, and the ship broke in two. I looked back over at my T.O. and couldn't help but laugh as the smirk in his eyes disappeared.

"_Havoc One to Commander. Havoc Squadron is en-route from the Spirit of Fire. ETA two minutes,_" said a voice over the crackling radio.

"_Understood Havoc One. Your help is greatly appreciated. We have a lot of Empire Class ship that need your 'special care',_" said Commander, laughing.

"_Oh, Commander, the GN'R album is finished. Would you like to suggest something?_" said DJ

"_Hmm… let me think. Umm, how about 'A Nightmare to Remember' by Dream Theater. That should get us through to the end of the fight,_" said Commander

"_Okay, a sixteen minute long prog metal song about a car crash victim is our song of choice to finish this fight with. Putting it on now,_" replied DJ, sounding like a DJ at a nightclub. All this was happening as they manoeuvred around the capital ships that were attempting to shoot them down, and destroying Bug Fighters and Blade Ships. Then, ten larger ships appeared, and flew straight into the fight. They were huge! At least four times bigger than the fighters, and looked like they could easily go toe-to-toe with a Pool Ship and win.

"_Ah… Havoc One, how nice of you to join us,_" said Commander

"_It's a pleasure as always, Commander,_" replied Havoc One, laughing. "_Havoc Two and Three, you're with me. Havoc Four, Five and Six, you have Pool Ship One. The rest of you, of have Pool Ship Two,_" a chorus of affirmatives followed.

"_Interrogative, what's our target Havoc One?_" asked either Havoc Two or Three.

"_Havoc Three, our target is that great big mutha of a Nova-Class Empire ship that's headed towards that small, friendly fleet over there. Answer your question?_"

"_Yes, sir_" Hang on, what Nova-Class Empire Ship? I looked out of the observation windows to the side of the viewscreen and saw the aforementioned ship approaching the task force, along with several others of the same kind, and several _Despoiler-_Class Empire Ships.

"Oh shit…" I swore under my breath, "Alert! We have incoming ships, they're on us!"

-(All hands to stations!)- Shouted my T.O. There was a rush of movement and sound as the crew scrambled to their stations and the weapons powered up.

"What's the status on the shields of those Despoilers?" I asked hurriedly.

-(All but one has their shields up, sir)- Answered one of the gunners.

"Ax…" I said expectantly.

-(All ships, concentrate all firepower on the Despoiler with its shields down)- he ordered. The crews gave their affirmatives, and prepared to fire. -(Fire!)- Ax shouted. I watched as the Shredders lanced out towards the ship and it disintegrated as the shots hit home.

"_Not bad, not bad at all,_" said Havoc One over the radio. "_Now let me show you how the professionals do it,_" I stood and watched as the massive fighters that made up Havoc Squadron manoeuvred their way through the mass of ships with surprising amount of ease.

"_Destroy Pool Ships One and Two,_" he said. The seven fighters flew over their targets and the next second, the Pool Ships were covered with explosions as the bombs ripped through the hull and vented atmosphere to burn. The Pool Ships slowly broke apart and vented the last of their atmosphere and all the Yeerks and crew into the cold vacuum. "_Havoc. Move onto the immediate threats. Highlighting targets now, engage when in give the order,_"

I watched the fighters move to intercept the cruisers that were about to attack us. Our ships let out another volley and caused some damage on the Nova ships that were advancing towards us. The remaining Nova ships turned to broadside us and let loose a volley of their own.

"Evasive manoeuvres! Now!" I shouted. The ship moved quickly, and the deadly beams shot past. All of a sudden, what looked like escape pods launched from one of the Despoilers, and headed straight for Rachel's ship. "What the hell are they doing?" I asked.

-(I have no idea, Prince Jake. I have never seen anything like it before)- Ax replied. That really scared me. Either the Yeerks were escaping from their ship and the launch vector happened to be in the same direction as Rachel's ship, or it was some new Yeerk tactic that they had learnt fighting humans. But before I could ponder any more on the Yeerks' strange behaviour, the Nova ships were lit up like a Christmas tree, and they started disintegrated.

"You gotta hand it to those boys," Marco said, "They know how to blow shit up!"

-(Yes, I agree with Marco)- Ax said. -(They exhibit an excellence with high-ordnance explosives that put most of the Andalite weapons specialists to shame)-

"Does mine ears deceive me, or was that humility?" Marco asked, a laugh evident in his voice.

-(Take it how you will, Marco. I as simply expressing that those pilots are very talented when it comes to, as you put it, "blowing shit up")- Ax replied, somewhat avoiding the point. All this was interrupted by a frantic message from Rachel.

"Jake! My ship's been boarded! We've got Taxxons, massive Hork-Bajir, and several species I've never seen before running rampant throughout the ship. We've already cut off all access to the bridge, but we don't know how they managed to do so much damage so quickly, or…" Rachel broke off quickly as she turned around and there was an explosion in the background. "Oh shit…"

All I could was stare as Rachel and her crew were taken hostage, and the communication was cut. So that's what the Yeerks were doing. I looked out the observation window again, and saw that Rachel's ship was turning around, and accelerating away.

The radio crackled to life again. "_Captain, I am so sorry that I couldn't stop the boarders in time. We got their craft, but not the Yeerks themselves. I warned the crew, though. I hope they put up a good fight. It's been a long time since they boarded a ship. I'm so sorry,_" Commander apologised, before turning his attention to something else. "_Time to end this fight. Commander to Spirit of Fire,_"

"_This is the Spirit of Fire, go ahead Commander,_" replied a female voice.

"_We need support, and we need it ASAP. Understood?_"

"_Yes, sir. The Spirit of Fire is en route,_"

* * *

A/N: I apologize for the almost two month wait for what I promised I would have up after a week. Anyway, thanks to everyone who reviewed, I'm surprised by just how many people were actually waiting for me to update. This time, I'll say that I don't have a date for the next chapter, but I will try to write a couple hundred words whenever I get some spare time. Hopefully I'll have the next chapter up in under three weeks.


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